IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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Ftolqgraphic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WKT  MAIN  STRUT 

WMSTM.N.Y.  USM 

(716)t72-4503 


a: 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  IVIicroraproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiquas 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


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n 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


r~n    Covers  damaged/ 


D 


D 
D 
D 
D 
D 


□ 


Couverture  endommagAe 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurie  et/ou  peiliculAe 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

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Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
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sont  indiquAs  ci-dessous. 


D 

D 
D 


Coloured  pages/ 
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Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagies 

Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restauries  et/ou  peMiculAes 


r~7    Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 


D 


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Pages  detached/ 
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I    "I   Showthrough/ 


Transparence 


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D 


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ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
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obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


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0   Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  suppitimentaires: 


Varioui  pagingi.  Wrinkled  pages  may  film  ilightly  out  of  focus. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  rMuction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

1SX 

22X 

28X 

3QX 

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12X 

16X 

20X 

24X 

28X 

32X 

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sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
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first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
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or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
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TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
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Dana  Porter  Arts  Library 
University  of  Waterloo 

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fllmage. 

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origineux  sont  filmto  en  commen^ant  par  la 
premlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernlAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaftra  sur  la 
dernlAre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — »-  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
filmAs  A  des  taux  de  reduction  diffArents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  Atre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clichA,  il  est  filmA  A  partir 
de  Tangle  supArieur  geuche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  ie  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


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HISTORY 


OP  THB 


CONSPIRACY  OF  PONTIAC. 


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HISTORY 


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OF   THB 


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CONSPIRACY  OF  PONTIAC, 


AND   THE   WAR  OF  THB 


NOETH  AMERICAN  TRIBES 


AGAINST  THE 


ENGLISH   COLONIES 


AFTER  THE 


CONQUEST  OF  CANADA. 


By  FRANCIS  PARKMAN,  Jr. 


"  Deewe  nobis  terra,  in  quSi  vivamus ;  in  quOL  raoriamur,  non  potest." 

Tacit.  Ann.  xiii.  56, 


// 


Property  of  the  Library 


University  of  Waterloo 


BOSTON: 


E 


CHARLES  C.  LITTLE  AND  JAMES  BROWN. 

LONDON:     RICHARD   BENTLEY. 

1851. 


^i>v" 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  j-ear  1851,  by         ', 
Fhancis  Pakkman,  Ja., 
In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


STEKEOTYPEI)  AT  THE 
BOSTON     STEREOTYPE     FOUNDHY. 


■^^^ 


TO 


JARED    SPARKS,   LL.  D., 

PKKSIDENT  OK  HARVARD  UNIVERSITY, 


THIS  VOLUiME  IS  DEDICATED 


AS  A  TESTIMONIAL  OF  HIGH  PERSONAL  REGARD, 


AND  A  TRIBUTE  OF  RESPECT 


FOR    HIS   DISTINGUISHED   SERVICES 


TO  AMERICAN  HISTORY. 


a 


* 


•,/.  ■*■" 


Vr     i^A 


fr^ 


PREFACE. 


1 


The  conquest  of  Canada  was  an  event  of  moment- 
ous consequence  in  American  history.  It  changed 
the  political  aspect  of  the  continent,  prepared  a  way 
for  the  independence  of  the  British  colonies,  rescued 
the  vast  tracts  of  the  interior  from  the  rule  of  mili- 
tary despotism,  and  gave  them,  eventually,  to  the 
keeping  of  an  ordered  democracy.  Yet  to  the  red 
natives  of  the  soil  its  results  were  wholly  disastrous. 
Could  the  French  have  maintained  their  ground,  the 
ruin  of  the  Indian  tribes  might  long  have  been  post- 
poned; but  the  victory  of  Quebec  was  the  signal  of 
their  swift  decline.  Thenceforth  they  were  destined 
to  melt  and  vanish  before  the  advancing  waves  of 
Anglo-Americaii  power,  which  now  rolled  westward 
unchecked  and  unopposed.  They  saw  the  danger, 
and,  led  by  a  great  and  daring  champion,  struggled 
fiercely  to  avert  it.  The  history  of  that  epoch, 
crowded  as  it  is  with  scenes  of  tragic  interest,  with 
marvels  of  suffering  and  vicissitude,  of  heroism  and 
endurance,  has  been,  as  yet,  unwritten,  buried  in 
the  archives  of  governments,  or  among  the  obscurer 


fM 


'I 


VUl 


PREFACE. 


records  of  private  adventure.  To  rescue  it  from  ob- 
livion is  the  object  of  the  following  work.  It  aims 
to  portray  the  American  forest  and  the  American  In- 
dian at  the  period  ^vhen  both  received  their  final 
doom. 

It  is  evident  that  other  study  than  that  of  the 
closet  is  indispensable  to  success  in  such  an  attempt. 
Habits  of  early  reading  had  greatly  aided  to  pre- 
pare me  for  the  task ;  but  necessary  knowledge  of  a 
more  practical  kind  has  been  supplied  by  the  indul- 
gence of  a  strong  natural  taste,  which,  at  various 
intervals,  led  me  to  the  wild  regions  of  the  north 
and  west.  Here,  by  the  camp-fire,  or  in  the  canoe, 
I  gained  familiar  acquaintance  with  the  men  and 
scenery  of  the  wilderness.  In  1846,  I  visited  various 
primitive  tribes  of  the  Eocky  Mountains,  and  was, 
for  a  time,  domesticated  in  a  village  of  the  western 
Dahcotah,  on  the  high  plains  between  Mount  Laramie 
and  the  range  of  the  Medicine  Bow. 

The  most  troublesome  part  of  the  task  was  the 
collection  of  the  necessary  documents.  These  con- 
sisted of  letters,  journals,  reports,  and  despatches, 
scattered  among  numerous  public  offices,  and  private 
families,  in  Europe  and  America.  "When  brought  to- 
gether, they  amounted  to  about  three  thousand  four 
hundred  manuscript  pages.  Contemporary  newspa- 
pers, magazines,  and  pamphlets  have  also  been  ex- 
amined, and  careful  search  made  for  every  book 
which,  directly  or  indirectly,  might  throw  light  upon 
the   subject.      I    have   visited   the    sites   of  all   the 


.'ft 


IPBEFACE. 


principal  events  recorded  in  the  narrative,  and  gath- 
ered such  local  traditions  as  seemed  worthy  of  con- 
fidence. 

I  am  indebted  to  the  liberality  of  Hon.  Lewis 
Cass  for  a  curious  collection  of  papers  relating  to 
the  siege  of  Detroit  by  the  Indians.  Other  impor- 
tant contributions  have  been  obtained  from  the  state 
paper  offices  of  London  and  Paris,  from  the  archives 
of  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  and  other  states,  and 
from  the  manuscript  collections  of  several  historical 
societies.  The  late  William  L.  Stone,  Esq.  com- 
menced an  elaborate  biography  of  Sir  William  Jol\n- 
son,  which  it  is  much  to  be  lamented  he  did  not 
live  to  complete.  By  the  kindness  of  Mrs.  Stone,  I 
was  permitted  to  copy  from  his  extensive  collection 
of  documents,  such  portions  as  would  serve  the  pur- 
poses of  the  following  History. 

To  President  Sparks  of  Harvard  University,  Gen- 
eral Whiting,  U.  S.  A.,  Brantz  Mayer,  Esq.  of  Balti- 
more, Francis  J.  Fisher,  Esq.  of  Philadelphia,  and 
Rev.  George  E.  Ellis  of  CharlestoAvn,  I  beg  to  return 
a  warm  acknowledgment  for  counsel  and  assistance. 
Mr.  Benjamin  Perley  Poore  and  Mr.  Henry  Stevens 
procured  copies  of  valuable  documents  from  the  ar- 
chives of  Paris  and  London.  Henry  R  Schoolcraft, 
Esq.,  Dr.  Elwyn  of  Philadelphia,  Dr.  O'Callaghan  of 
Albany,  George  H.  Moore,  Esq.  of  New  York,  Ly- 
man C.  Draper,  Esq.  of  Philadelphia,  Judge  Law  of 
Vincennes,  and  many  others,  have  kindly  contributed 
materials   to   the   work.      Nor    can    I   withhold   an 

B 


I 


PREFACE. 


n 


expression  of  thanks  to  the  aid  so  freely  rendered 
in  the  dull  task  of  proof-reading  and  correction. 

The  crude  and  promiscuous  mass  of  materials  pre- 
sented an  aspect  by  no  means  inviting.  The  field  of 
the  history  was  uncultured  and  unreclaimed,  and  the 
labor  that  awaited  me  was  like  that  of  the  border 
settler,  who,  before  he  builds  his  rugged  dwelling, 
must  fell  the  forest-trees,  bum  the  undergrowth,  clear 
the  ground,  and  hew  the  fallen  trunks  to  due  pro- 
portion. 

Several  obstacles  have  retarded  the  progress  of  the 
work.  Of  these,  one  of  the  most  considerable  was 
the  condition  of  my  sight,  seriously,  though  not  per- 
manently, impaired.  For  about  three  years,  the  light 
of  day  was  insupportable,  and  every  attempt  at  read- 
ing or  writing  completely  debarred.  Under  these  cir- 
cumstances, the  task  of  sifting  the  materials  and 
composing  the  work  was  begun  and  finished.  The 
papers  were  repeatedly  read  aloud  by  an  amanuensis, 
copious  notes  and  extracts  were  made,  and  the  narra- 
tive written  down  from  my  dictation.  This  process, 
though  extremely  slow  and  laborious,  was  not  with- 
out its  advantages ;  and  I  am  well  convinced  that  the 
authorities  have  been  even  more  minutely  examined, 
more  scrupulously  collated,  and  more  thoroughly  di- 
gested, than  tliey  would  have  been  under  ordinary 
circiunstances. 

In  order  to  escape  the  tedious  circumlocution, 
which,  from  the  nature  of  the  subject,  could  not 
otherwise   have   been    avoided,   the  name   Enelish  is 


c 


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PREFACE. 


XI 


endered 
on. 

als  pre- 
field  of 
and  the 
border 
[welling, 
th,  clear 
iue  pro- 


applied,  throughout  the  volume,  to  the  British  Ameri- 
can colonists,  as  well  as  to  the  people  of  the  mother 
country.  The  necessity  is  somewhat  to  be  regretted, 
since,  even  at  an  early  period,  clear  distinctions  were 
visible  between  the  oiFshoot  and  the  parent  stock. 

Boston,  August  1,  1851. 


is  of  the 
able  was 
not  per- 
the  light 
at  read- 
;hese  cir- 
ials   and 
d.     The 
muensis, 
lc  narra- 
process, 
lot  with- 
that  the 
;amined, 
ly  di- 
rdinary 


locution, 
luld  not 
lelish  is 


V  i 


Gene 
Tribe 
Mod6 
Socia 
The' 


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Theii 

Theii 

Tradi 

Their 

Their 

Arts- 

Their 

For 

Their 

The^ 

Festi\ 

Pride 

The! 

Their 

Their 

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The! 

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ThoA 


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CONTENTS. 


,.  ^f  1  i^; 


CHAPTER    I. 


r-^ 


Introductory. — Indian  Tribes  East  of  the  Mississippi. 


PAGE 

PAGE 

General  Characteristics  . 

1 

The  Tuscaroras  . 

24 

Tribal  Divisions  . 

2 

Superiority  of  the  Iroquois  Race 

24 

Mode  of  Government 

2 

The  Algonquins  . 

25 

Social  Harmony  . 

3 

The  Lenni  Lepape  . 

26 

The  Totem      .... 

4 

Their  changing  Fortunes     . 

27 

Classification  of  Tribes 

5 

The  Shawanoes 

28 

The  Iroquois   .... 

6 

The  Miamis  and  the  Illinois 

29 

Their  Position  and  Character 

7 

The  Ojibwas,  Pottawattamies, 

Their  Political  Organization    . 

8 

and  Ottawas     . 

30 

Traditions  of  their  Confederacy 

11 

The  Sacs  and  Foxes 

30 

Their  Myths  and  Legends 

12 

The  Menomonies  and  Kniste- 

Their  Eloquence  and  Sagacity 

13 

neaux       .... 

30 

Arts  —  Agriculture . 

14 

Customs  of  the  Northern  Al- 

Their Dwellings,  Villages,  and 

gonquins      .... 

31 

Forts 

14 

Their  Summer  and  Winter  Life 

31 

Their  Winter  Life 

16 

Legends  of  the  Algonqums      . 

33 

The  War  Path 

16 

Religious  Faith  of  the  Indians 

34 

Festivals  and  Pastimes 

18 

The  Indian  Character 

35 

Pride  of  the  Iroquois 

18 

Its  Inconsistencies 

36 

The  Hurons  or  Wyandots    . 

19 

Its  Ruling  Passions 

36 

Their  Customs  and  Character . 

20 

Pride — Hero-worship. 

37 

Their  Dispersion . 

21 

Coldness,  Jealousy,  Suspicion 

37 

The  Neutral  Nation  —  Its  Fate 

21 

Self-control .... 

38 

The  Eries  and  Andastes  . 

22 

Intellectual  Traits  . 

38 

Triumphs  of  the  Confederacy 

22 

Inflexibility. 

39 

The  Adoption  of  Prisoners 

23 

Generous  Qualities . 

39 

CHAPTER    II. 
France  and  England  in  America. 


Contrast  of  French  and  Eng- 
lish Colonies 


Feudalism  in  Canada 
41        Priests  and  Monks  = 

h 


42 
42 


Il 


XIV 

Puritaniam,  and  Democracy  in 

New  England 
French  Life  in  Canada 
Military  Strength  of  Canada   . 
Religious  Zeal    . 
Missions  —  The  Jesuits  . 
Brebeuf  and  Lallemant 
Martyrdom  of  Jogues 
Results  of  the  Missions 
French  Explorers    . 


CONTENTS. 

La  Salle      .... 

51 

42 

His  Plan  of  Discovery    . 

51 

43 

His  Sufferings — His  Heroism 

52 

44 

He  discovers  the  Mouth  of  the 

45 

Mississippi 

54 

46 

Louisiana        .... 

55 

47 

France  in  the  West     . 

56 

48 

Growth  of  English  ColonieL    . 

5(j 

49 

Approaching  Collision . 

57 

50 

■>,        * 

III 


CHAPTER    III. 
The  Frexcii,  the  English,  and  the  Indians. 


Champlain  defeats  the  Iroquois 
The  Iroquois  Wars 
Misery  of  Canada   . 
Expedition  of  Frontenac 
Success  of  the  French    . 
French  Influence  in  the  West 
La  Verandrye .... 
The  English  Fur-trade 
Protestant  and  Romish  Missions 
The  English  and  the  Iroquois 
Policy  of  the  French 
The  FrencJunan  in  tlie  Wig- 
wam       .... 
Coureurs  des  Bois  . 


59 

The  White  Savage      . 

70 

60 

The  English  Fur-trader  . 

71 

61 

William  Penn  and  his  Eulo- 

61 

gists    

71 

63 

The  Indians  and  the  Quakers 

72 

63 

Injustice  of  Penn's  Successors 

73 

63 

The  Walking  Purchase  . 

75 

(U 

Speech  of  Canassatego 

76 

65 

Removal  of  the  Delawares 

77 

65 

Intrusion  of  Settlers    . 

77 

66 

Success  of  French  Intrigues   . 

78 

Father  Picquet     . 

79 

69 

Sir  William  Johnson 

80 

69 

Position  of  Parties 

83 

:l 


i! 


',i 


CHAPTER    IV. 


CoLtlSION   OP    THE    RlVAL   CoLONIES. 


The  Puritan  and  the  Canadian  85 

Fort  Frederic       ...  85 

Acadia 86 

The  French  on  the  Ohio  .  86 
Mission  of  Washington  .  .  87 
Trent  driven  from  the  Ohio .  88 
Death  of  Jumonville  .  .  89 
Skirmish  at  the  Great  Mead- 
ows    89 


Alarm  of  the  Indians  .  .  90 
Congress  at  Albany  .  .  91 
French  and  English  Diplomacy  91 
Braddock  and  Dicskau  .  92 
Naval  Engagement .  .  .92 
The  War  in  Europe  and  America  93 
Braddock  in  Virginia  .  .  94 
March  of  his  Army  .  .  95 
Beaujeu  at  Fort  du  Quesne     .    96 


CONTENTS. 


XV 


51 
51 
52 

54 

55 
5C 

57 


Ambuscade  at  the  Monongahela  99 
Rout  of  Braddock  .  .  .100 
Its  Consequences  .  .  102 
Acadia,  Niagara,  and  Crown 

Point 102 

Battle  of  Lake  George  .  103 
Prosecution  of  the  War  .  .  107 
Oswego  —  Fort  William  Henry  109 
Storming  of  Ticonderoga  .  110 
State  of  Canada  .  .  .111 
Plans  for  its  Reduction   .        .  112 


Progress  of  the  English  Arms  112 
Wolfe  before  Quebec  .  .113 
Assault  at  Montmorenci  .  .  115 
Heroism  of  Wolfe  *.  .  117 
The  Heights  of  Abraham  .  119 
Battle  of  Quebec  .  .  121 
Death  of  Wolfe  .  .  .123 
Death  of  Montcalm  .  .  124 
Surrender  of  Quebec  .  .  125 
Fall  of  Canada    ...      126 


• 

70 

•              • 

71 

Eulo- 

•               • 

71 

ikers 

72 

essors 

73 

•                • 

75 

• 

76 

3S 

77 

• 

77 

ues   . 

78 

• 

79 

»                • 

80 

• 

83 

.i-.":ii 


CHAPTER    V. 


The  Wilderness  and  its  Tenants  at  the  Close  of  the 
French  War. 


Sufferings  of  the  Frontier 

127 

The  Shawanoes,  Miamis,  Illi- 

Treaties   with   the   Western 

nois,  and  Wyandots . 

134 

Tribes      .... 

127 

English  Settlements 

135 

Christian  Frederic  Post   . 

128 

Forest  Thoroughfares  . 

135 

The  Iroquois 

130 

Fur-traders  —  Their   Habits 

The  remote  Tribes . 

131 

and  Character  . 

136 

The  Forest  .... 

131 

The  Forest  Traveller      . 

137 

Indian  Population    . 

132 

The  French  at  the  Illinois   . 

139 

Condition  of  the  Tribes 

133 

Military  Life  in  the  Forest 

140 

Onondaga        .        .        .        . 

133 

The  Savage  and  the  European 

140 

The  Delawares  and  neighbor- 

Hunters and  Trappers     . 

141 

ing  Tribes  .        .        .        . 

134 

Civilization  and  Barbarism  . 

142 

Their  Habits  and  Condition 

134 

:'.<i 

^■i' 


1 

I** 

m 

■  *  I 


5* 


CHAPTER   VI. 


The  English  take  Possession  of  the  Western  Posts. 


.    90 
91 

macy  91 
92 
.  92 
merica  93 
.  94 
95 
■le     .    96 


The  victorious  Annies  at  Mon- 
treal     144 

Major  Robert  Rogers  .  .  144 
His  Expedition  up  tlie  Lakes  .  147 
His  Meeting  with  Pontiac  .  148 
Ambitious  Views  of  Pontiac   .  149 


He  befriends  the  English  .  149 
The  English  take  Possession 

of  Detroit  .  .  .151 
Of  other  French  Posts  .  .  152 
British  Power  Predominant  in 

the  West    .        .       .        .152 


i' 


XVI 


CONTENTS. 


I: 


CHAPTER    VII. 
AsgEr  op  the  Indians.  —  The  Conspiracy. 


Discontent  of  the  Tribes 

Impolitic  Course  of  tlie  English  154 

Disorders  of  the  Fur-trade 

Military  Insolence 

Intrusion  of  Settlers 

French  Intrigue  . 

The  Delaware  Prophet    . 

An  abortive  Plot . 

Pontiac's  Conspiracy 

Character  of  Pontiac   . 


.  153 

Gloomy  Prospects  of  the  Indian 

Lish  154 

Race 

163 

.  155 

Designs  of  Pontiac 

164 

.      155 

His  War  Messengers 

165 

.  156 

Tribes  engaged  in  the   Con- 

.     157 

spiracy     .... 

166 

.  158 

Dissimulation  of  the  Indians    . 

167 

.      160 

The  War-bolt  among  the  Mi- 

.  161 

amis         .... 

167 

.      161 

CHAPTER    VIII. 


Indian  Preparation. 


The  Indians  as  a  military  Peo- 
ple .  .  .  .  .169 
Their  inefficient  Organization  169 
Their  insubordinate  Spirit  .  170 
Their  Improvidence  .  .  171 
Policy  of  the  Indian  Leaders  .  171 
Difficulties  of  Forest  Warfare  172 
Defenceless  Condition  of  the 
Colonies  ....      172 


The  Peace  of  Paris 

Royal  Proclamation 

The  War-chief.  His  Fasta  and 
Vigils 

The  War-feast.  The  War- 
dance  

Departure  of  the  Warriors  . 

The  Bursting  of  the  Storm 


CHAPTER    IX. 


The  Council  at  the  River  Ecorces. 


Pontiac  musters  his  Warriors  .  177 
They  assemble  at  the  River 

Ecorces  ....  177 
The  Council  .  .  .178 
Speech  of  Pontiac  .        .        .  179 


173 
173 

174 

175 
175 
176 


Allegory  of  the  Delaware    .  180 

The  Council  dissolves      .  .  184 

Calumet  Dance  at  Detroit    .  185 

Plan  to  surprise  the  Garrison  .  186 


'i 


CONTENTS. 


XVll 


CHAPTER    X. 


Strange  Phenomenon 
Origin  and  History  of  Detroit 
Its  Condition  in  1763 
Character  of  its  Inhabitants  . 
French  Life  at  Detroit    . 
The  Fort  and  Garrison 
Pontiac  at  Isle  k  la  Peche 


Detroit.                     ^            .    .  >  - 

187 

Suspicious  Conduct  of  the  In- 

188 

dians    

192 

188 

Catharine,  the  Ojibwa  Girl  . 

193 

189 

She  reveals  the  Plot 

194 

189 

Precautions  of  the  Command- 

190 

ant   

194 

191 

A  Night  of  Anxiety 

195 

CHAPTER    XI. 


Treachery  of  Pontiac. 


\ 

The  Morning  of  the  Council   . 

197 

Pontiac  enters  the  Fort 

198 

Address  and  Courage  of  the 

.  173 

Commandant 

199 

173 

The  Plot  defeated 

200 

i 

'          The  Chiefs  suffered  to  escape  . 

201 

174 

Indian  Idea  of  Honor  . 

202 

'' 

Pontiac  again  visits  the  Fort   . 

203 

.  175 

False  Alarm 

203 

175 

.  176 

Pontiac  throws  off  the  Mask    . 
Ferocity  of  his  Warriors 
The  Ottawas  cross  the  River  . 
Fate  of  Davers  and  Robertson 
General  Attack 
A  Truce      .... 
Major  Campbell's  Embassy 
He  is  made  Prisoner  by  Pon- 
tiac     ..... 


204 
205 
20G 
207 
207 
209 
210 

213 


II 


w 

if,! 


CHAPTER    XII. 


■*'L 


Pontiac  at  the  Sjege  of  Detroit. 


180 

.  184 

185 

ion  .  180 


The  Christian  Wyandots  join 

Pontiac  ....  215 
Peril  of  the  Garrison  .  .  21(5 
Indian  Courage  .  .  .  217 
The  English  tlireatcncd  with 

Famine  ....  219 
Pontiac's    Council    with    the 

French  .  .  .  .220 
His  Speech  ....      221 

C 


He  exacts  Provision  from  Uie 

French  ....  224 
He  appoints  Commissaries  .  224 
He  issues  Promissory  Notes  .  225 
His  Acuteness  and  Sagacity  225 
His  Authority  over  his  Fol- 
lowers   220 

His  Magnanimity         .        .      227 

b* 


i4 


XVlll 


CONTENTS. 


iiii'. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 


V. 


Rout  of  Ccyler's  Detachment.  —  Fate  of  the  Forest  Garrisons. 


Rcenforcement  sent  to  Detroit  229 
Attack  on  the  Schooner  .  .  230 
Relief  at  Hand  .  .  .  231 
Disappointment  of  the  Garrison  231 
Escape  of  Prisoners  .  .  232 
Cuyler's  Defeat ...  234 
Indian  Debauch  .  .  .  235 
Fate  of  the  Captives  .  .  236 
Capture  of  Fort  Sandusky       .  238 


Strengtli  of  tlie  Besiegers  .  239 

Capture  of  Fort  St.  Joseph  .  240 
Capture  of  Fort  Michillimack- 

inac        ....  242 

Capture  of  Fort  Ouatanon  .  243 

Capture  of  Fort  Miami      .  244 

Defence  of  Fort  Presqn'Isle  .  246 

Its  Capture        ...  249 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


The  Indians  continue  to  Blockade  Detroit. 


Attack  on  the  armed  Vessel  .  252 
News  of  the  Treaty  of  Paris  253 
Pontiac  summons  the  Garrison  255 
Council  at  the  Ottawa  Camp  255 
Disappointment  of  Pontiac  .  257 
He  is  joined  by  the  Coureurs 
des  Bois       ....  258 


Sortie  of  the  Garrison  ''V' ^ 
Death  of  Major  Campbell  .  260 
Attack  on  Pontiac's  Camp  .  262 
Fire  Rafts  .  ,  .  .263 
The  Wyandots  and  Pottaiirat- 
tamies  beg  for  Peace  .  265 


CHAPTER    XV, 


The  Fight  at  Bloody  Bridge. 


Dalzell's  Detachment 
Dalzell  reaches  Detroit 
Stratagem  of  the  Wyandots    . 
Night    Attack    on    Pontiac's 

Camp 

Indian  Ambuscade     .       V  / 
Retreat  of  the  English    .        . 


26? 

Terror  of  Dalzell's  Troops 

274 

269 

Death  of  Dalzell     . 

275 

269 

Defence  of  Campau's  House 

276 

Grant  conducts  the  Retreat 

276 

270 

Exultation  of  the  Indians  . 

278 

271 

Defence  of  the  Schooner  Glad- 

273 

wyn        .... 

279 

CONTENTS. 


XIX 


n'::'i 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

MlCHILLIHACKIRAC. 


C- 


The  Voyager  on  the  Lakes  .  282 

Michillimackinac  in  1763   .  283 

Green  Bay  and  Ste.  Marie  .  284 

The  Northern  Wilderness  .  284 

Tribes  of  the  Lakes         .  .  285 

Adventures  of  a  Trader     .  286 

Speech  of  Minavavana    .  .  288 

Arrival  of  English  Troops .  290 


Disposition  of  the  Indians  291 

The  Ojibwa  War-chief      .  291 

Ambassadors  from  Pontiac  .  292 
Sinister  Designs  of  the  Ojibwas  292 

Warnings  of  Danger      .  .  293 

Wawatam  ....  293 

Eve  of  the  Massacre       .  .  295 


iVV    .    ■'•:, 


'■^•'■"^  CHAPTER    XVII.    '  '-  -'v;.  >.^H  -    •  -■: 


The  Massacre. 


■  1  yti  '.,    . 


The  King's  Birthday  .  .  296 
Heedlessness  of  the  Garrison  297 
Indian  Ball-play  .  .  .  297 
The  Stratagem  ...  298 
Slaughter  of  the  Soldiers  .  298 
Escape  of  Alexander  Henry  299 
His  appalling  Situation  .  .  301 
His  Hiding-place  discovered  304 
Survivors  of  the  Massacre  .  306 
Plan  of  retaking  the  Fort  .  306 
Adventures  of  Henry  .  .  307 
Unexpected   Behavior   of   the 

Ottawas       .... 
They  take  Possession  of  the 

Fort 

Their  Council  with  the  Ojibwas  309 
Henry  and  his  Fellow-prisoners  311 


311 
313 
314 
314 
314 
316 
316 


308 


309 


He  is  rescued  by  Wawatam    . 

Cannibalism 

Panic  among  the  Conquerors   . 

They  retire  to  Mackinaw     . 

The  Island  of  Mackinaw 

Indian  Carouse     . 

Famine  among  the  Indians 

They  disperse  to  their  Winter- 
ing Grounds 

Green  Bay.  The  neighboring 
Tribes      .... 

Gorell.  His  Address  and  Pru- 
dence   318 

He  conciliates  the  Indians    .      319 

He  abandons  Green  Bay  .        .  321 

The  English  driven  from  the 
Upper  Lakes    .        .        .      322 


317 


317 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 
Frontier  Forts  and  Settlements. 


<m' 


Extent  of  British  Settlements               Forts  and  Military  Routes   .      324 
in  1763        ....  323       Fort  Pitt 324 


"0    I 


XX 

The  Pennsylvania  Frontier  . 
Alarms  at  Fort  Pitt . 
Escape  of  Calhoun 
Slaughter  of  Traders 
Fort  Ligonier.    Fort  Bedford 
Situation  of  Fort  Pitt      . 
Indian  Advice      .     ,,»  '     • 
Reply  of  Ecuyer     . 


CONTENTS. 

306 

News  from  Prcsqu'Isle    . 

.  335 

327 

Fate  of  Le  Boeuf 

336 

328 

Fate  of  Venango     . 

.  337 

.328 

Danger  of  Fort  Pitt     . 

338 

331 

Council  with  the  Delawares 

.  339 

.332 

Threats  of  the  Commandant 

341 

333 

General  Attack       . 

.  343 

.  334 

> .  ■  I  r  1 

1  nm  1 

:» -o      V  T  •v                               ''^X  ■ 

•   '■!  ■-'' 

The  War  on  ths  Borders. 


Panic  among  the  Settlers        .  344 
Foeble  Resources  of  the  Eng- 
lish       345 

Measures  of  Defence  .        .      346 
Alarm  at  Carlisle    .       .        .  347 


Scouting  Parties  .  .  .  347 
Ambuscade  on  the  Tuscarora  .  348 
The  dying  Borderer  .  .  349 
Scenes  at  Carlisle    .        .        .  350 


CHAPTER    XX, 


The  Battle  of  Bdshy  Ru.v. 


The  Army  of  Bouquet     .  .  352 

Dangers  of  his  Enterprise  .      353 
His  Character ....  354 

Fort  Ligonier  relieved .  .      356 

Bou'liUet  at  Fort  Bedford  .  .  356 

March  of  his  Troops    .  .      357 

Unexpected  Attack .        .  .  358 


The  Night  Encampment  .      360 

The  Fight  resumed .        .  .  362 

Conflict  of  the  second  Day  .      363 

Successful  Stratagem      .  .  364 

Rout  of  the  Indians     .  .      365 

Bouquet  reaches  Fort  Pitt  .  367 

Effects  of  the  Victory  .  .      3»]8 


CHAPTER    XXI. 


The  Iroquois.  —  Ambuscade  of  the  Devil's  Hole. 


Congress  of  Iroquois        .        .  370 

Effect  of  Johnson's  Influence  371 

Incursions  into  New  York        .  372 

False  Alarm  at  Goshen        .  372 


The  Niagara  Portage  .        .  373 

The  Convoy  attacked  .  .      374 

Second  Attack         .  .        .  375 

Disaster  on  Lake  Erie  .  .      377 


CONTENTS. 


XXI 


'■"     CHAPTER    XXII. 

:  .  .  .  .      '/ 

Desolation  or  the  Frontiers. 


;  ^i'i 


Virginian  Backwoodsmen  .  378 

Frontiers  of  Virginia  .        .  379 

Population  of  Pennsylvania  .  380 

Distress  of  the  Settlers        .  381 

Attack  on  Greenbrier      .  .  383 

A  captive  Amazon       .        .  384 

Attack  on  a  School-house  .  385 

Sufferings  of  Captives .        .  387 

The  escaped  Captive       .  .  388 

Feeble  Measures  of  Defence  390 


John  Elder  .... 
Virginian  Militia 
Courage  of  the  Borderers    . 
Encounter  with  a  War-party 
Armstrong's  Expedition 
Slaughter  at  Wyoming    . 
Quaker  Prejudice 
Gage  assumes  the  Command 
Political  Disputes 


'    CHAPTER    XXIIl. 
The  Indians  raise  the  Siege  of  Detroit. 


391 
392 
393 
394 
395 
396 
397 
398 
399 


The  Besiegers  ask  for  Peace  .  401 
A  Truce  granted .  .  .  402 
Letter  from  Neyon  to  Pontiac  .  403 
Autumn  at  Detroit       .        .      404 


Indians    at    their    Wintering 

Grounds  ....  405 
Iroquois  War-parties  .  <  406 
The  War  in  the  South    .        .  407 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 


The  Paxton  Men. 


Desperation  of  the  Borderers  . 
Effects  of  Indian  Hostilities 
The  Conestoga  Band 
Paxton         .... 
Matthew  Smitli  and  his  Com- 
panions    .... 
Massacre  of  the  Conestogas    . 
Further  Designs  of  the  Rioters  416 


409 

Remonstrance  of  Elder 

417 

411 

Massacre  in  Tiancaster  Jail 

.417 

411 

State  of  public  Opinion 

420 

412 

Lazarus  Stewart 

.  421 

The  Moravian  Converts 

421 

413 

Their  Retreat  to  Philadelphia 

.  424 

414 

Their  Reception  by  the  Mob 

425 

CHAPTER    XXV. 
The  Rioters  march  on  Philadelphia. 


Excitement  of  the  Borderers    .  426 
Their  Designs       .        .      .      428 


Alarm  of  the  Quakers     .        .  429 
The  Converts  sent  to  New  York  430 


xxn 

The  Commt  ffrfred  to  rclurn 
Q'inkcre  and  Pre8\j,  trrianB 
Wnrliko  Preparation  . 

Excitenif  nt  in  the  City     . 
Filsc  Alarm 


CONTENTS. 

43 

Pnxton  Men  at  Gcnnnntown    . 

437 

4{« 

Negotiations  with  the  Riocora 

4:3d 

4»1 

Frontieramon  in  Philadelphia  . 

440 

4a'S 

Paper  Warfare     . 

441 

4m] 

Memorials  of  tlio  I'jAton  Men 

443 

CHAPTER    XXVI. 
Bhadstreet's  Armit  on  the  Lakes. 


I 


Memorials  on  Indian  Affairs    . 

44(5 

Presumption  of  Bradstreet       .  46^ 

Cliaructcr  of  Bradstrcot 

448 

Indians  of  Sandusky    .        .      4i>l 

Departure  of  the  Army   . 

449 

Bradstreet  at  Detroit       .        .  4r>5 

Concourse  of  Indians  at  Niagara 

450 

Council  with  tlio  Chiofs  of  1  )< 

Indian  Oracle  .        .        .        . 

451 

troit.        ...              466 

Temper  of  the  Indians 

455 

Terms  of  tlie  Treaty       .        .  467 

Insolence  of  the  Delawarcs  anc 

Strange  Conduct  of  Bradstreet  468 

Shawanoca  .        .        .        . 

45G 

Michillimacki'.iac  rcoccupied    .  469 

Treaty  with  the  Senecas 

456 

Embassy  of  Morris      .        ,      469 

OttawRs  and  Menomonies 

457 

Bradstreet  at  Sandusky    .        .  475 

Bradstreet  leaves  Niagara    . 

459 

Return  of  the  Army    .        .      476 

Henry's  Indian  Battalion . 

460 

Results  of  tlie  Expedition       .  477 

Pretended  Embassy     . 

461 

?I 


5  :'. 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

BoUqUET   iORCES    THE   DeLAWARES   AND   ShAWANOES    TO    SUE    FOR 

Peace. 


Renewal  of  Indian  Ravages    .  479 
David  Owens,  the  White  Sav- 
age       480 

Advance  of  Bouquet  .  .  482 
His  Message  to  the  Delawares  483 
The  March  of  his  Army  .  .  485 
He  reaches  the  Muskingum .  486 
Terror  of  the  Enemv  .  .  487 
Council  with  the  Indians  .  488 
Speech  of  the  Delaware  Orator  489 
Reply  of  Bouquet  .  .  .  491 
Its  Effect     ....      493 


The  English  Camp  .  .  .494 
Letter  from  Bradstreet .  .  495 
Desperate  Purpose  of  the  Shaw- 

anocs 496 

Peace  Council  .  .  .  498 
Delivery  of  English  Prisoners .  502 
Siti  1  'or    >f  Captives   among 

t^io  hid,  inn  ...  507 

T'l.!;    ''.V    ..       ;u  to  reti..»  lO 

ui '  ijcitlemonts  .  .  508 
The  Forest  Life  .  .  .508 
Return  of  the  Expedition     .      511 


CONTENTS. 


XXUl 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 
The  iLLi.vors. 


Boundaries  of  tho  Illinois     .      5i:i 
The  Missouri.    Tho  Mississippi  513 
Plants  and  Animals  of  the  Illi- 
nois       515 


Its  early  Colonizatioa 
Creoles  of  Iho  Illinois 
Its  Indian  Population 


517 
510 
521 


400 

• 

4.;4 

Aa, 

[)r 

, 

466 

'IGT 

•ect  4(]8 

il 

4(19 

, 

4tJ9 

475 

• 

476 

477 

CHAPTER    XXIX. 


PONTIAC    RALLIES   THE   WESTERN  TrIBES. 


Cession  of  French  Territory  in 

the  West     .        .        .  .522 

St.  Louis      ....  523 

St.  Ange  de  Bellcrive      .  .  524 

Designs  of  Pontiac       .        .  526 

His  French  Allies   .        .  .  527 

He  visits  the  Illinois    .       .  529 


His  great  War-belt .  .  .530 
Repulse  of  Loflus  .  .  S31 
The  English  on  tlie  Mississippi  S33 
New  Orleans  in  1765  .  .  534 
Pontiac's  Embassy  at  Ne>  Or- 
leans    .....  536 


CHAPTER    XXX. 


Ruin  of  the  Indian  Cause. 


X   Vl* 

Mission  of  Croghan         .        .  539 

Plunder  of  the  Caravan        .      540 

.  494 

Exploits  of  the  Borderers        .  542 

.      495 

Congress  at  Fort  Pitt  .        .      545 

•W- 

Fraser's  Discomfiture       .        .  546 

.  49(J 

Distress  of  the  hostile  Indians    547 

,      498 

Pontiac.     His    desperate   Po- 

rs. 502 

sition   549 

ng 

Croglmn's  Party  attacked     .      550 

507 

tO 

508 

CHAPT 

.  508 

511 

Death  < 

Croghan  at  Ouatanon       .  .  SSl 

His  Meeting  with  Pontiac    .  512 

Pontiac  offers  Peace        .  .  5.53 

Croghan  reaches  Detroit      .  5.^') 

Conferences  at  Detroit    .  .  554 

Peace  Speech  of  Pontiac     .  55* 

Results  of  Croghan's  Mission  .  55fc 
The  English  take  Possession 

of  the  Illinois  .        .        .  539 


EfTecU!  of  *he  Peace        .        .  560        Congress  at  Oswego        .        .  569 
Pontiac  repairs  to  Oswego   .      500       Speech  of  Sir  William  Johnson  563 


>Vi 


llil 

jtll 


I 


.|:i!!i 


Ml 


<  '■         ■  ■  ■ 

XXiv  CONTENTS. 

Reply  of  Pontiac     .        .        .565  The  Village  of  Cahokia       .  569 

Prospects  of  the  Indian  Race     566  Assassination  of  Pontiac  .  .  571 

Fresh  Disturbances      .        .      567  Vengeance  of  his  Followers  571 

Pontiac  visits  St.  Louis    .        .  568  fv-;                       i              ,  | 

APPENDIX. 

A. — The  Iroquois.  —  Extent  of  their  Conquests.  —  Potior  pur- 
sued TOWARDS  THEM  BT  THE  FrENCH  AND  THE  EnOLISH.  —  MEASURES 

OF  Sir  Wiluah  Johnson. 

1.  Territory  of  the  Iroquois       ...  ....  575 

2.  French  and  English  Policy  towards  the  Iroquois.    Measures  of 

Sir  William  Johnson 576 

:.    i   ■    ■■  '  ■  --•■"       '--■  .  ■■'   •■■-■■>':  i;.  .'v 

B.  —  Causes  op  the  Indian  War.  \-     t 

1.  Views  of  Sir  William  Johnson 579 

2.  Tragedy  of  Ponteach 581 

C.  —  Detroit  and  Michillihackinac. 

1.  The  Siege  of  Detroit 588 

2.  Massacre  of  Micliillimackinac 596 

D. — The  War  on  the  Borders. 
The  Battle  of  Bushy  Run 598 

E. — The  Paxton  Riots. 

1.  Evidence  against  the  Indians  of  Conestoga 603 

2.  Proceedings  of  the  Rioters 603 

3.  Memorials  of  the  Paxton  Men 613 

F.— The  Campaign  of  1764. 

1.  Bouquet's  Expedition 620 

2.  Condition  and  Temper  of  the  Western  Indians         .        .       .      622 


'Vri 


m^. 


i\m 


• 

5G9 

.  571 

B 

571 

It 

-  _  J 

HISTORY 


OF  TUB 


CONSPIRACY  OF  PONTIAC. 


CHAPTER    I. 


INTRODUCTORY. 


•  INDIAN  TRIBES  EAST  OF  THE 
MISSISSIPPI. 


The  Indian  is  a  true  child  of  the  forest  and  the 
desert.  The  wastes  and  solitudes  of  nature  are  his 
congenial  home.  His  haughty  mind  is  imbued  with 
the  spirit  of  the  wilderness,  and  the  light  of  civiliza- 
tion falls  on  him  with  a  blighting  power.  His  unruly 
pride  and  untamed  freedom  are  m  harmony  with  the 
lonely  mountains,  cataracts,  and  rivers  among  which 
he  dwells;  and  primitive  America,  with  her  savage 
scenery  and  savage  men,  opens  to  the  imagination  a 
boundless  world,  unmatched  in  wild  sublimity. 

The  Indians  east  of  the  Mississippi  may  be  divided 
into  several  great  families,  each  distinguished  by  a 
radical  peculiarity  of  language.  In  their  moral  and 
intellectual,  their  social  and  political  state,  these  va- 
rious families  exhibit  strong  shades  of  distinction ;  but, 
before  pointing  them  out,  I  shall  indicate  a  few  promi- 
nent characteristics,  which,  faintly  or  distinctly,  mark 


S?; 


'/. 


•A 


V 


the  whole  in  common. 


INDIAN  TRIBES. 


[Chap.  I. 


11^ 


;:i| 


All  are  alike  a  race  of  hunters,  sustaining  life  wholly, 
or  in  part,  by  the  fruits  of  the  chase.  Each  family  is 
split  into  tribes;  and  these  tribes,  by  the  exigencies 
of  the  hunter  life,  are  again  divided  into  sub-tribes, 
bands,  or  villages,  often  scattered  far  asunder,  over  a 
wide  extent  of  wilderness.  Unhappily  for  the  strength 
and  harmony  of  the  Indian  race,  each  tribe  is  prone  to 
regard  itself,  not  as  the  member  of  a  great  whole,  but 
as  a  sovereign  and  independent  nation,  often  arrogat- 
ing to  itself  an  importance  superior  to  all  the  rest 
of  mankind ;  ^  and  the  warrior  whose  petty  horde  might 
muster  a  few  scores  of  half-starved  fighting  men,  strikes 
his  hand  upon  his  heart,  and  exclaims,  in  all  the  pride 
of  patriotism,  "  I  am  a  Menomone." 

In  an  Indian  community,  each  man  i^  his  own 
master.  He  abhors  restraint,  and  owns  no  other  au- 
thority than  his  own  capricious  will ;  and  yet  this  mid 
notion  of  liberty  is  not  inconsistent  with  certain  gra- 
dations of  rank  and  influence.  Each  tribe  has  its 
sachem,  or  civil  chief,  whose  office  is  in  a  manner  he- 
reditary, and,  among  many,  though  by  no  means  among 
all  tribes,  descends  in  the  female  line;  so  that  the 
brother  of  the  incumbent,  or  the  son  of  his  sister,  and 
not  liis  own  son,  is  the  rightful  successor  to  his  digni- 
ties.*^ If,  however,  in  the  opinion  of  the  old  men  and 
subordinate  chiefs,  the  heu*  should  be  disqualified  for 
the  exercise  of  the  office  by  cowardice,  incapacity,  or 
any  defect  of  character,  they  do  not  scruple  to  discard 


t 


Si:  \'i. 


'  Many  Indian  tribes  bear  names 
wliicii  in  their  dialect  sijrnify  men, 
indicating  tiiat  the  character  belongs, 
par  excellence,  to  them.  Sometimes 
the  word  was  used  by  itself,  and 
sometimes  an  adjective  was  joined 
with  it,  as  origiiutl  tnen,  tnen  sur- 
passitig  all  others. 


"  The  dread  of  female  infidelity 
has  been  assigned,  and  with  probable 
truth,  as  the  origin  of  this  custom. 
The  sons  of  a  chief's  sister  must 
necessarily  be  his  kindred;  though 
his  own  reputed  son  may  be,  iu  fact, 
the  offspring  of  another. 


;!•! 


/■ 


Ckap.  I.]  THEIR  PECULIAE,  CHARACTERISTICS. 


ie  pride 

us   own 
ther  au- 
his  -wild 
ain  gra- 
has   its 
mer  lie- 
amoiig 
lat   the 
ter,  and 
is  digni- 
nen  and 
ified  for 
icity,  or 
discard 


e  infidelity 
th  probable 
liis  custom. 
sister  must 
ed;  though 
be,  in  fact, 


him,  and  elect  another  in  his  place,  usually  fixing  their 
choice  on  one  of  his  relatives.  The  office  of  the  sa- 
chem is  no  enviable  one.  He  has  neither  laws  to  ad- 
minister nor  power  to  enforce  his  commands.  His 
counsellors  are  the  inferior  chiefs  and  principal  men 
of. the  tribe;  and  he  never  sets  himself  in  opposition 
to  the  popular  will,  which  is  the  sovereign  power  of 
these  savage  democracies.  His  province  is  to  advise, 
and  not  to  dictate ;  but,  should  he  be  a  man  of  energy, 
talent,  and  address,  and  especially  should  he  be  sup- 
ported by  numerous  relatives  and  friends,  he  may  often 
acquire  no  small  measure  of  respect  and  power.  A 
clear  distinction  is  drawn  between  the  civil  and  mili- 
tary authority,  though  both  are  often  united  in  the 
same  person.  The  functions  of  war-chief  may,  for  the 
most  part,  be  exercised  by  any  one  whose  prowess  and 
reputation  are  sufficient  to  induce  the  young  men  to 
follow  him  to  battle ;  and  he  may,  whenever  he  thinks 
proper,  raise  a  band  of  volunteers,  and  go  out  against 
the  common  enemy.  •       j 

We  might  imagine  that  a  society  so  loosely  framed 
would  soon  resolve  itself  into  anarchy;  yet  this  is 
not  the  case,  and  an  Indian  village  is  singularly  free 
from  wranglings  and  petty  strife.  Several  causes  con- 
spire to  this  result.  The  necessities  of  the  hunter  life, 
preventing  the  accumulation  of  large  communities, 
make  more  stringent  organization  needless;  while  a 
species  of  self-control,  inculcated  from  childhood  upon 
every  individual,  enforced  by  a  sentiment  of  dignity  and 
manhood,  and  greatly  aided  by  the  peculiar  temperar 
ment  of  the  race,  tends  strongly  to  the  promotion  of 
hannony.  Though  he  owns  no  law,  the  Indian  is  in- 
flexible in  his  adherence  to  ancient  usages  and  cus- 
the  principle  of  hero-worship,  which  belongs 


St* 


5 


fr. 


cm 


4.»J   y       \Ail.X\X.     -   •  ■  — 


T0TEM8HIP. 


[Chap.  I. 


ii 


to  his  nature,  inspires  liim  with  deep  respect  for  the 
sages  and  captains  of  his  tribe.  The  very  rudeness  of 
his  condition,  and  the  absence  of  the  passions  which 
wealth,  luxury,  and  the  other  incidents  of  civilization 
engender,  are  favorable  to  mternal  harmony;  and  to 
the  same  cause  must  likewise  be  ascribed  too  many,  of 
his  virtues,  which  would  quickly  vanish,  were  he  ele- 
vated from  his  savage  state. 

A  peculiar  social  institution  exists  among  the  In- 
dians, highly  curious  in  its  character ;  and  though  I 
am  not  prepared  to  say  that  it  may  be  traced  through 
all  the  tribes  east  of  the  Mississippi,  yet  its  prevalence 
is  so  general,  and  its  influence  on  political  relations 
so  important,  as  to  claim  especial  attention.  Indian 
communities,  independently  of  their  local  distribution 
into  tribes,  bands,  and  villages,  are  composed  of  several 
distinct  clans.  Each  clan  has  its  emblem,  consisting 
of  the  figure  of  some  bird,  beast,  or  reptile ;  and  each 
is  distinguished  by  the  name  of  the  animal  which  it 
thus  bears  as  its  device ;  as,  for  example,  the  clan  of  the 
Wolf,  the  Deer,  the  Otter,  or  the  Hawk.  In  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Algonquins,  these  emblems  are  known  by 
the  name  of  Totems}  The  members  of  the  same  clan, 
being  connected,  or  supposed  to  be  so,  by  ties  of  kin- 
dred, more  or  less  remote,  are  prohibited  from  inter- 
Thus  AVolf  cannot  marry  AVolf;    but  he 


marriage. 


'  Schoolcraft,  Onoota,  172. 

The  extraordinary  Jiguroa  intend- 
ed to  represent  tortoises,  deer, 
snakes,  and  otiier  animals,  which  are 
often  seen  appended  to  Indian  trea- 
ties, are  the  totems  of  the  chiefs, 
who  employ  these  devices  of  their 
respective  clans  as  their  sitrn  manual. 
Tiie  device  of  his  clan  is  also  some- 
times tattocd  on  the    body  of  the 


The  word  tribe  might,  perliaps, 
have  been  employed  with  as  much 
propriety  as  that  of  clan,  to  indicate 
the  totemic  division;  but  as  the  for- 
mer is  constantly  employed  to  repre- 
sent the  local  or  political  divisions 
of  the  Indian  race,  hopeless  confu- 
sion would  arise  from  using  it  in  a 
double  capacity. 


ClIAP.  I.] 


GENERIC  DIVISIONS. 


may,  if  he  chooses,  take  a  wife  from  the  clan  of  Hawks, 
or  any  other  clan  but  his  own.  It  follows  that  Avhen 
this  prohibition  is  rigidly  observed,  no  single  clan  can 
live  apart  from  the  rest ;  but  the  whole  must  be 
mingled  together,  and  in  every  family  the  husband 
and  wife  must  be  of  different  clans. 

To  different  totems  attach  different  degrees  of  rank 
and  dignity ;  and  those  of  the  Bear,  the  Tortoise,  and 
the  Wolf  are  among  the  first  in  honor.  Each  man  is 
proud  of  his  badge,  jealously  asserting  its  claims  to 
respect;  and  the  members  of  the  same  clan,  though 
they  may,  perhaps,  speak  different  dialects,  and  dwell 
far  asunder,  are  yet  bound  togetiier  by  the  closest  ties 
(^f  fraternity.  If  a  man  is  killed,  every  member  of  the 
clan  feels  called  upon  to  avenge  him ;  and  the  way- 
farer, the  himter,  or  the  warrior  is  sure  of  a  cordial 
welcome  in  the  distant  lodge  of  the  clansman  whose 
face  perhaps  he  has  never  seen.  It  may  be  added 
that  certain  privileges,  highly  prized  as  hereditary 
lights,  sometimes  reside  in  particular  clans;  such  as 
that  of  furnishing  a  sachem  to  the  tribe,  or  of  per- 
forming certain  religious  ceremonies  or  magic  rites. 

The  Indians  east  of  the  Mississippi  may  be  divided 
into  three  great  families ;  the  Iroquois,  the  Algonquin, 
and  the  Mobilian,  each  speaking  a  language  of  its  own, 
varied  by  numerous  dialectic  forms.  To  these  fiimilies 
must  be  added  a  few  stragglers  from  the  great  western 
race  of  the  Dahcotah,  besides  several  distinct  tribes  of 
the  south,  each  of  which  has  been  regarded  as  speaking 
a  tongue  peculiar  to  itself^  The  Mobilian  group  em- 
braces the  motley  confederacy  of  the  Creeks,  the  crafty 
Choctaws,  and  the  stanch  and  warlike  Chickasaws.    Of 

'  For  an  ample  view  of  these  divisions,  sete  tlie  Synopsis  of  Mr.  Gal- 
latin, Trans.  Am.  Ant.  Soc.  II. 

A* 


l! 


6 


THE  IROQUOIS. 


[Chap.  I. 


tlicsc,  and  of  the  distinct  tribes  dwelling  in  their  \i- 
cinity,  or  within  their  limits,  I  shall  only  obsciTc 
that  they  offer,  with  many  modifications,  and  under 
different  aspects,  the  same  essential  features  which 
mark  the  Iroquois  and  the  Algonquins,  the  two  great 
ftimilies  of  the  north.*  The  latter,  who  were  the  con- 
spicuous actors  in  the  events  of  the  ensuing  narrative, 
demand  a  closer  attention. 

THE  IROQUOIS  FAMILY. 

Foremost  in  war,  foremost  in  eloquence,  foremost  in 
their  savage  arts  of  policy,  stood  the  fierce  people  called 
by  themselves  the  Ilodenosaunee,  and  by  the  French 
the  Iroquois,  a  name  which  has  since  been  applied  to 
the  entire  family  of  Avhich  they  formed  the  dominant 
member."  They  extended  their  conquests  and  their 
depredations  from  Quebec  to  the  Carolinas,  and  from 
the  western  prauics  to  the  forests  of  Maine.^     On  the 


n 


1  It  appears  from  several  passages 
in  the  writings  of  Adair,  Hawkins, 
and  others,  that  the  totem  prevailed 
among  the  southern  tribes.  In  a 
conversation  with  the  late  Albert 
(lallatin,  he  informed  me  tliat  he  was 
tokl  by  tlic  ciiiefs  of  a  Choctaw 
deputation,  at  Wasliington,  that  in 
their  tribe  were  eight  totemic  clans, 
divided  into  two  classes,  of  four  each. 
It  is  very  remarkable  that  the  same 
number  of  clans,  and  tJie  same  di- 
vision into  classes,  were  to  be  found 
among  tiie  Five  Nations,  or  Iroquois. 

-  A  great  difficulty  in  the  study 
of  Indian  history  arises  from  a  redun- 
dancy of  names  employed  to  designate 
the  same  tribe ;  yet  this  docs  not  pre- 
vent the  same  name  from  being  otlen 
used  to  designate  two  or  more  differ- 
ent tribes.  The  following  are  the 
chief  of  tiiose  wliich  arc  applied  to  tlie 


Iroquois  by  different  writers,  French, 
English,  and  German :  — 

Iroquois,  Five,  and  afterwards  Six 
Nations;  Confederates,  Hodenosau- 
nce,  Aquanuscioni,  Aggonnonshioni, 
Ongwe  Honwe,  Mengwe,  Maquas, 
Maiiaquase,  Massawomecs,  Palenach 
endchiesktajeet 

The  name  of  Massawomees  has 
been  applied  to  several  tribes ;  and 
that  of  Mingces  is  often  restricted 
to  a  colony  of  the  Iroquois  which 
established  itself  near  the  Ohio. 

y  Francois,  a  well-known  Indian 
belonging  to  the  remnant  of  tlie  Pc- 
nobscots  living  at  Old  Town,  in 
Maine,  told  me,  in  tho  summer  of 
1843,  that  a  tradition  was  current, 
among  his  people,  of  their  being 
attacked  in  ancient  times  by  the 
Mohawks,  or,  as  ho  called  them,  Mo- 
hogs,  a  tribe  of  the  Iroquois,  wlio  de- 


iJ 


[Ciur.  I. 

their  "vi- 
obsciTc 
1  under 
3  which 
vo  great 
the  con- 
larrative, 


emost  in 
lie  called 

French 
oplied  to 
lominant 
nd  their 
ind  from 

On  the 

ers,  French, 

r wards  Six 
Ilodenosau- 
)nnonsl)ioni, 
Maquas, 
;s,  Palenach 

romees  has 
tribes;  and 
1  restricted 
luois  which 
u  Ohio, 
own  Indian 
:  of  the  Pc- 
Town,  in 
summer  of 
'as  current, 
their  beiuff 
les  by  the 
1  tlicm,  Mo- 
uis,  who  de- 


Ciup.  I.] 


THE  IROQUOIS. 


south,  they  forced  tribute  from  the  subjugated  Dela- 
Avares,  and  pierced  the  mountam  fastnesses  of  the 
Cherokees  with  incessant  forays.^  On  the  north,  they 
uprooted  the  ancient  settlements  of  the  "VVyandots ;  on 
the  west,  they  exterminated  the  Eries  and  the  An- 
dastes,  and  spread  havoc  and  digmay  among  the  tribes 
of  the  Illinois ;  and  on  the  east,  the  Indians  of  New 
England  fled  at  the  first  peal  of  the  Mohawk  war- 
cry.  Nor  was  it  the  Indian  race  alone  who  quailed 
before  their  ferocious  valor.  All  Canada  shook  with 
the  desolating  fury  of  their  onset;  the  people  fled  to 
the  forts  for  refuge;  the  blood-besmeared  conquerors 
roamed  like  wolves  among  the  burning  settlements, 
and  the  youtliful  colony  trembled  on  the  brink  of  ruin. 
The  Iroquois  in  some  measure  owed  their  triumphs 
to  the  position  of  their  country ;  for  they  dwelt  with- 
in the  present  limits  of  the  state  of  New  York,  whence 
several  great  rivers  and  the  inland  oceans  of  the  north- 
ern lakes  opened  ready  thoroughfares  to  their  roving 
warriors  through  all  the  adjacent  wilderness.  But  the 
true  fountain  of  their  success  is  to  be  sought  in  their 
own  mherent  energies,  wrought  to  the  most  effective 
action  under  a  political  fabric  well  suited  to  the  In- 
dian life;  in  their  mental  and  moral  organization;  in 
their  insatiable  ambition  and  restless  ferocity. 


stroyed  one  of  their  villages,  killed 
the  men  and  women,  and  roasted 
the  small  cliildren  on  forked  sticks, 
like  apples,  before  the  fire.  When 
lie  began  to  tell  his  story,  Fran<joi3 
was  engaged  in  patching  an  old  ca- 
noe, in  preparation  for  a  moose  hunt ; 
but,  soon  growing  warm  with  his  re- 
cital, he  gave  over  his  work,  and  at 
the  conclusion  exclaimed  with  great 
wrath  and  earnestness,  "Mohog  all 
devil!" 

1  The  tribute  exacted   from   tlio 
Delawares  consisted  of  wampum,  or 


beads  of  shell,  an  article  of  inesti- 
mable value  with  the  Indians.  "  Two 
old  men  commonly  go  about,  every 
year  or  two,  to  receive  this  tribute  ; 
and  I  have  often  had  opportunity  to 
observe  what  anxiety  the  poor  In- 
dians were  under,  while  these  two 
old  men  remained  in  that  part  of  the 
country  where  I  was.  An  old  Mo- 
hawk sachem,  in  a  poor  blanket  and 
a  dirty  shirt,  may  be  seen  issuing  his 
orders  with  as  arbitrary  an  authority 
as  a  Roman  dictator." —  Colden,  Hist, 
Five  JVations.  4. 


fl 


Hi'* 


'W 


H''; 


'./ 


t 


THE  IROQUOIS. 


[Chap.  I. 


In  their  scheme  of  government,  as  in  their  social  cus- 
toms and  religious  observances,  the  Iroquois  displayed, 
in  full  symmetry  and  matured  strength,  the  same  charac- 
teristics which  in  other  tribes  are  found  distorted,  with- 
ered, decayed  to  the  root,  or,  perhaps,  faintly  visible  in 
an  imperfect  germ.  They  consisted  of  five  tribes  or 
nations,  the  Mohawks,  the  Oneidas,  the  Onondagas, 
the  Cayugas,  and  the  Senecas,  to  whom  a  sixth,  the 
Tuscaroras,  was  afterwards  added.^  To  each  of  these 
tribes  belonged  an  organization  of  its  own.  Each  had 
several  sachems,  who,  with  the  subordinate  chiefs  and 
prmcipal  men,  regulated  all  its  internal  aiFairs ;  but, 
Avhen  foreign  powers  were  to  be  treated  with,  or  mat- 
ters involving  the  whole  confederacy  required  delibera- 
tion, all  the  sachems  of  the  several  tribes  convened 
in  general  assembly  at  the  great  council-house,  in  the 
Valley  of  Onondaga.  Here  ambassadors  were  received, 
alliances  were  adjusted,  and  all  subjects  of  general  in- 
terest discussed  with  exemplary  harmony.^    The  order 


ri«   >. 


'1-. 


'  The  following  are  synonymous 
names,  gathered  ftom  various  wri- 
ters :  — 

Mohawks,  Anies,  Agniers,  Agni- 
orrhonons,  Sankhicans,  Canungas, 
Manguawogs,  Ganeagaonoh. 

Oneidas,  Oneotas,  Onoyata,  Ano- 
yints,  Onneiouts,  Oneyyotecaronoh, 
Onoiochrhonons. 

Onondagas,  Onnontagues,  Onon- 
ilagaonohs. 

Cayugas,  Caiyoquos,  Goiogoens, 
(Jwcugwehonoh. 

Senecas,  Sinnikes,  Chcnnessics, 
CJenesees,  Chenandoanes,  Tsonnon- 
touans,  Jcnontowanos,  Nundawaro- 
iioh. 

-  "In  the  year  1745,  August  Gott- 
lieb Spangenburg,  a  bishop  of  the 
United  Bretliren,  spent  several  weeks 
in  Onondaga,  and  frequently  attend- 
ed the  great  council.  The  council- 
housR  was  built  of  bark.    On  each 


side  six  seats  were  placed,  each  con- 
taining six  persons.  No  one  was 
admitted  besides  the  members  of  the 
council,  except  a  few,  who  were  par- 
ticularly honored.  If  one  rose  to 
speak,  all  the  rest  sat  in  profound 
silence,  smoking  their  pipes.  The 
speaker  uttered  his  words  in  a  sing- 
ing tone,  always  rising  a  few  notes 
at  the  close  of  each  sentence.  What- 
ever was  pleasing  to  the  council  was 
confirmed  by  all  with  the  word  Nee,  or 
Yes.  And,  at  the  end  of  each  speech, 
the  whole  company  joined  in  applaud- 
ing the  speaker  by  calling  Hoho. 
At  noon,  two  men  entered  bearing  a 
large  kettle  filled  with  meat,  upon  a 
polo  across  their  shoulders,  which 
was  first  presented  to  the  guests.  A 
large  wooden  ladle,  as  broad  and 
deep  as  a  common  bowl,  hung  with 
a  hook  to  tlie  side  of  the  kettle,  with 
wliich  every  one  inlght  at  once  help 


Chap.  I.] 


TOTEMSHIR 


f 


/ 


of  debate  was  prescribed  by  time-honored  custoni^; 
and,  in  the  fiercest  heat  of  controversy,  the  assembly 
maintained  its  u-on  self-control.  u.^v- 

But  the  main  stay  of  Iroquois  polity  was  the  sys- 
tem of  totemship.  It  was  this  wliich  gave  the  structure 
its  elastic  strength;  and  but  for  this,  a  mere  confed- 
eracy of  jealous  and  warlike  tribes  must  soon  have 
been  rent  asunder  by  shocks  from  without  or  discord 
from  within.  At  some  early  period,  the  Iroquois  must 
have  foi-med  an  individual  nation ;  for  the  whole  people, 
irrespective  of  their  separation  into  tribes,  consisted 
of  eight  totemic  clans ;  and  the  members  of  each  clan, 
to  what  nation  soever  they  belonged,  were  mutually 
bound  to  one  another  by  those  close  ties  of  fraternity 
which  mark  this  singular  institution.  Thus  the  five 
nations  of  the  confederacy  were  laced  together  by  an 
eight-fold  band;  and  to  this  hour  their  slender  rem- 
nants cling  to  one  another  with  invincible  tenacity. 

It  was  no  small  security  to  the  liberties  of  the 
Iroquois  —  liberties  which  they  valued  beyond  any 
other  possession  —  that  by  the  Indian  custom  of  de- 
scent in  the  female  line,  which  among  them  was  more 
rigidly  adhered  to  than  elsewhere,  the  office  of  the 
sachem  must  pass,  not  to  his  son,  but  to  his  brother, 
his  sister's  son,  or  some  yet  remoter  kinsman.  His 
power  was  constantly  deflected  into  the  collateral 
branches  of  his  family ;  and  thus  one  of  the  strongest 
temptations  of  ambition  was   cut   off.*     The  Iroquois 


himself  to  as  much  as  he  could  eat. 
When  the  guests  had  eaten  their  fill, 
tliey  begged  the  counsellors  to  do 
tlie  same.  The  whole  was  conducted 
in  a  very  decent  and  quiet  manner. 
Indeed,  now  and  then,  one  or  the  other 
would  lie  flat  upon  his  back  to  rest 
himself,  and  sometimes  tiiey  would 


stop,  joke,  and  laugh  heartily."  — 
Loskiel,  Hist.  Morav.  Miss,  138. 

1  The  descent  of  the  sachemsliip  in 
the  female  line  was  a  custom  univer- 
sally prevalent  among  the  Five  Na- 
tions, or  Iroquois  proper.  Since, 
among  Indian  tribes  generally,  the 
right  of  furnishing  a  sachem  was 


10 


THE  IROQl'OIS. 


[Chap.  I. 


had  no  laws;  but  they  had  ancient  customs  which 
took  the  place  of  laws.  Each  man,  or  rather,  each 
clan,  was  the  avenger  of  its  own  wrongs;  hut  the 
manner  of  the  retaliation  Avas  fixed  by  established 
usage.  The  tribal  sachems,  and  even  the  great  coun- 
cil at  Onondaga,  had  no  power  to  compel  the  execution 
of  their  decrees;  yet  they  were  looked  up  to  with  a 
respect  which  the  soldier's  bayonet  or  the  sheriff's 
staff  would  never  have  commanded ;  and  it  is  highly 
to  the  honor  of  the  Indian  character  that  they  could 
exact  so  great  an  authority  where  there  was  nothing 
to  enforce  it  but  the  weight  of  moral  i>ower.^ 

The  origin  of  the  Iroquois  is  lost  in  hopeless  ob- 
scurit}'.  That  they  came  from  the  west;  that  they 
came  from  the  north ;  that  they  sprang  from  the  soil 


vested  in  some  particular  totemic 
clan,  it  reaults  of  course  that  the 
descent  of  the  sachemship  must  fol- 
low the  descent  of  the  totem ;  that 
is,  if  the  totcmship  descend  in  the  fe- 
male line,  the  sachemship  must  do  the 
same.  This  custom  of  descent  in 
the  female  line  prevailed  not  only 
among  the  Iroquois  proper,  but  also 
among  the  Wyandots,  and  probably 
among  the  Andastes  and  the  Erics, 
extinct  members  of  the  great  Iroquois 
family.  Thus,  among  any  of  these 
tribes,  when  a  Wolf  warrior  married 
a  Hawk  squaw,  their  children  were 
Hawks,  and  not  Wolves.  With  the 
Creeks  of  the  south,  according  to  the 
observations  of  Hawkins,  (Georgia 
llvit.  Coll.  III.  69,)  the  rule  was  the 
same;  but  among  the  Algonquins, 
on  the  contrary,  or  at  least  among 
the  northern  branches  of  this  family, 
the  reverse  took  place,  the  totem- 
ships,  and  consequently  the  chieflain- 
Hhips,  descending  in  the  male  line, 
after  the  analogy  of  civilized  nations. 
For  tliis  information  concerning  the 
northern  Algonquins  I  am  indebted 
to  iiio  courtesy  of  Mr.  Schoolcrait, 


whose  opportunities  of  observation 
among  these  tribes  have  only  been 
e(i'!alled  by  the  ability  and  faitliful- 
r:  ,88  with  which  he  has  used  them. 

1  An  account  of  the  political  insti- 
tutions of  the  Iroquois  will  be  found 
in  Mr.  Morgan's  series  of  letters,  pub- 
lished in  the  Ameilcan  Review  for 
1847.  Valuable  information  may  also 
be  obtained  from  Schoolcraft's  Notes 
on  the  Iroquois. 

Mr.  Morgan  is  of  opinion  that  those 
institutions  were  the  result  of  "a 
protracted  effort  of  legislation."  An 
examination  of  the  customs  prevail- 
ing among  other  Indian  tribes  makes 
it  probable  that  the  elements  of  the 
Iroquois  polity  existed  among  them 
from  an  indefinite  antiquity;  and  the 
legislation  of  which  Mr.  Morgan 
speaks  could  only  involve  the  ar- 
rangement and  adjustment  of  already 
existing  materials. 

Since  the  above  chapter  was  writ- 
ten, Mr.  Morgan  has  published  an 
elaborate  and  very  able  work  on  the 
institutions  of  the  Iroquois.  It  forms 
an  invaluable  addition  to  this  depart- 


0 


CuAP.Il         TRADITIONS  OF  THEIR  CONFEDERACY. 


11 


of  New  York,  are  the  testimonies  of  three  conflicting 
traditions,  all  equally  worthless  as  aids  to  historic 
inquiry.^  It  is  at  the  era  of  their  confederacy  —  the 
event  to  which  the  five  tribes  owed  all  their  great- 
ness and  power,  and  to  which  we  need  assign  no 
remoter  date  than  that  of  a  century  before  the  first 
arrival  of  the  Dutch  in  New  York  —  that  faint  rays 
of  light  begin  to  pierce  the  gloom,  and  the  chaotic 
traditions  of  the  earlier  epoch  mould  themselves  into 
foi-ms  more  palpable  and  distinct. 

Taounyawatha,  the  God  of  the  Waters  —  such  is  the 
belief  of  the  Iroquois  —  descended  to  the  earth  to  in- 
struct his  favorite  people  in  the  arts  of  savage  life; 
and  when  he  saw  how  they  were  tormented  by  giants, 
monsters,  and  evil  spirits,  he  urged  the  divided  tribes, 
for  the  common  defence,  to  band  themselves  together 
in  an  everlasting  league.  While  the  injunction  was 
as  yet  unfulfilled,  the  sacred  messenger  was  recalled 
to  the  Great  Spirit;  but,  before  his  departure,  he 
promised  that  another  should  appear,  empowered  to 
instruct  the  people  in  all  that  pertained  to  their  con- 
federation. And  accordingly,  as  a  band  of  Mohawk 
warriors  was  threading  the  funereal  labyrinth  of  an 
ancient  pine  forest,  they  heard,  amid  its  blackest 
depths,  a  hoarse  voice  chanting  in  measured  cadence ; 
and,  following  the  sound,  they  saw,  seated  among  the 
trees,  a  monster  of  so  hideous  an  aspect,  that,  one  and 
all,  they  stood  beniunbed  with  terror.  His  features 
were  wild  and  frightful.  He  was  encompassed  by 
hissing  rattlesnakes,  which,  Medusa-like,  hung  writhing 
from  his  head;  and  on  the  groimd  around  him  were 


I 


9 

I 

0 


-i'  1 


1 
0 


1  Recorded  by  Heckewelder,  Col-  by  the  whites,  is  rendered  probable 

den,  and  Schoolcraft.    That  the  Iro-  by  several  circumstances.    See  Mr. 

quois  had  long  dwelt  on  the  spot  Squier's    work    on    the    Aboriginal 

where    they    were    first   discovered  Monuments  of  New  York. 


12 


THE  lUOQUOIS. 


(Ciiir.  I. 


strewn  implcnionts  of  inrniitatiou,  and  magic  vessels 
formed  of  human  skulls,  llecovering  from  their  amaze- 
ment, the  warriors  could  perceive  that  in  the  mystic 
words  of  the  chant,  which  he  still  poured  forth,  were 
couched  the  laws  and  principles  of  the  destined  con- 
federacy. The  tradition  further  declares  that  the  mon- 
ster, being  surrounded  and  captured,  was  presently 
transfonned  to  human  shape,  that  he  became  a  chief 
of  transcendent  wisdom  and  prowess,  and  to  the  day  of 
his  death  ruled  the  councils  of  the  now  united  tribes. 
To  this  hour,  the  presiding  sachem  of  the  council  at 
Onondaga  inherits  from  him  the  honored  name  of 
Atotarho.^ 

The  traditional  epoch  which  preceded  the  auspicious 
event  of  the  confederacy,  though  wrapped  in  clouds 
and  darkness,  and  defying  historic  scrutiny,  has  yet  a 
character  and  meaning  of  its  own.  The  gloom  is 
peopled  thick  with  phantoms;  with  monsters  and  prod- 
igies, shapes  of  wild  enormity,  }  et  offermg,  in  the  Teu- 
tonic strength  of  their  conception,  the  evidence  of 
a  robustness  of  mind  unparalleled  among  tribes  of 
a  different  lineage.  In  these  evil  days,  the  scattered 
and  divided  Iroquois  were  beset  with  every  fonu  of 
peril  and  disaster.  Giants,  cased  in  armor  of  stone, 
descended  on  them  from  the  mountains  of  the  north. 
Huge  beasts  trampled  down  their  forests  like  fields 
of  grass.  Human  heads,  with  streaming  hair  and  glar- 
ing eyeballs,  shot  through  the  air  like  meteors,  shedding 
pestilence  and  death  throughout  the  land.  A  grsat 
homed  serpent  rose  from  Lake  Ontario ;  and  only  the 
thunder-bolts  of  the  skies  could  stay  his  ravages,  and 


1  This  preposterous  legend  was  Iiiiii  by  Mr.  Schoolcraft,  in  his  Notes, 
first  briefly  related  in  the  pamplilet  The  curious  work  of  Cusick  will 
of  Cusick,  the  Tuscarora,  and  after    again  be  referred  to. 


CiiAr.  I.) 


TIIKIU   MVTIIS  AND   LKOENDS. 


13 


81 


clrivo  hiiu  buck  to  his  native  deeps.  The  skeletons 
of  men,  victims  of  some  monster  of  the  forest,  were 
seen  swimming  in  the  Lake  of  Teungktoo;  and  around 
the  Scnecii  \illagc  on  the  Hill  of  Gcnundewah,  a  two- 
headed  serpent  coiled  himself,  of  size  so  monstrous 
that  the  wretched  people  were  unable  to  ascend  his 
scaly  sides,  and  perished  in  multitudes  by  his  pestilen- 
tial breath.  Mortally  wounded  at  length  by  the  magic 
arrow  of  a  child,  he  rolled  down  the  steep,  sweeping 
away  the  forest  with  his  writhings,  and  plunging  into 
the  lake  below,  where  he  lashed  the  black  waters  till 
they  boiled  with  blood  and  foam,  and  at  length,  ex- 
hausted with  his  agony,  sunk,  and  perished  at  the 
bottom.  Under  the  Falls  of  Niagara  dwelt  the  Spirit 
of  the  Thunder,  with  his  brood  of  giant  sons;  and 
the  Iroquois  trembled  in  their  villages  when,  amid  the 
blackening  shadows  of  the  storai,  they  heard  his  deep 
shout  roll  along  the  firmament. 

The  energy  of  fancy,  whence  these  barbarous  cre- 
ations drew  their  biith,  displayed  itself,  at  a  later 
period,  in  that  peculiar  eloquence  which  the  wild  de- 
mocracy of  the  Iroquois  tended  to  call  forth,  and  to 
which  the  mountain  and  the  forest,  the  torrent  and 
the  storm,  lent  their  stores  of  noble  imagery.  That 
to  this  imaginative  vigor  was  joined  mental  power 
of  a  different  stamp,  is  witnessed  by  the  caustic  irony 
of  Garangula  and  Sagoyewatha,  and  no  less  by  the 
subtle  policy,  sagacious  as  it  was  treacherous,  which 
marked  the  dealings  of  the  Iroquois  with  suiTound- 
ing  tribes.* 


;|5 


1  > 


ij 


1  For  traditions  of  the  Iroquois  see  dian,  who,  being  disabled  by  an  acci- 

Schoolcraft,  Notes,  Chap.  IX.    Cu-  dent  from  active  occupations,  essayed 

sick,  History  of  the  Five  Nations,  to  become  the  historian  of  his  people, 

and  Clark,  Ilist.  Onondaga,  I.  and  produced  a  small  pamphlet,  writ- 

Cusick  was  an  old  Tascarora  In-  ten  in  a  language  almost  unintcUi- 

B 


SKiE- 


u 


TIIE  IROQUOIS. 


[Chap.  I. 


With  all  this  mtellcctual  aupoiiority,  the  arts  of 
life  among  them  had  not  emerged  from  their  primi- 
tive rudeness ;  and  their  coarse  pottery,  their  sj^ear 
and  arrow  heads  of  stone,  were  in  no  way  superior  to 
those  of  many  other  tribes.  Their  agriculture  deserves 
a  higher  praise.  In  1696,  the  invading  ai-my  of  Count 
Frontenac  found  the  maize  fields  extending  a  league 
and  a  half  or  two  leagues  from  their  villages;  and, 
in  1779,  the  troops  of  General  Sullivan  were  filled 
with  amazement  at  their  abundant  stores  of  com, 
beans,  and  squashes,  and  at  the  ancient  apple  orchards 
which  grew  around  their  settlements. 
'  Their  dwellings  and  works  of  defence  were  far 
from  contemptible,  either  in  their  dimensions  or  in 
their  structure ;  and  though  by  the  several  attacks  of 
the  French,  and  especially  by  the  invasion  of  De  Non- 
ville,  in  1687,  and  of  Frontenac,  nine  years  later,  their 
fortified  towns  were  levelled  to  the  earth,  never  again 
to  reappear ;  yet,  in  the  works  of  Champlain  and  other 
early  writers  we  find  abundant  evidence  of  their  pris- 
tine condition.  Along  the  banks  of  the  Mohawk, 
among  the  hrls  and  hollows  of  Onondaga,  in  the  for- 
ests of  Oneida  and  Cayuga,  on  the  romantic  shores 
of  Seneca  Lake  and  the  rich  borders  of  the  Genesee, 
surrounded  by  waving  maize  fields,  and  encircled  from 
afar  by  the  green  margin  of  the  forest,  stood  the 
ancient  strongholds  of  the  confederacy.  The  clus- 
tering dwellings   were  encompassed  by   palisades,   in 


gible,  and  filled  with  a  medley  of 
traditions  in  which  a  few  grains  of 
truth  arc  inextricably  mingled  with 
a  tangled  mass  of  absurdities.  He 
relates  the  monstrous  legends  of  his 
people  with  an  air  of  implicit  faith, 
and  traces  the  preaiuirig  aachenris  of 
the  confederacy  in  regular  descent 


from  the  first  Atotarho  downwards. 
His  work,  which  was  printed  at  the 
Tnscarora  village,  near  Lewiston,  in 
1828,  is  illustrated  by  several  rude 
engravings  representing  the  Stone 
Giants,  the  Flying  Heads,  and  other 


j:*; 1 „,.» 

iiauiiiuiiai  iiiuiisicrS. 


Chap.  I.] 


THEIR  FORTS  AND  VILLAGES. 


15 


single,  double,  or  triple  rows,  pierced  with  loopholes, 
furnished  with  platforms  within,  for  the  convenience 
of  the  defenders,  with  magazines  of  stones  to  hurl 
upon  the  heads  of  the  enemy,  and  with  water  con- 
ductors to  extinguish  any  fire  which  might  be  kindled 
from  without.^ 

The  area  which  these  defences  enclosed  was  often 
several  acres  in  extent,  and  the  dwellings,  ranged  in 
order  within,  were  sometimes  more  than  a  hundred 
feet  in  length.  Posts,  firmly  driven  into  the  ground, 
with  an  intervening  framework  of  poles,  formed  the 
basis  of  the  structure;  and  its  sides  and  arched  roof 
were  closely  covered  with  layers  of  elm  bark.  Each 
of  the  larger  dwellings  contained  several  distinct  fam- 
ilies, whose  separate  fires  were  built  along  the  central 
space,  while  compartments  on  each  side,  like  the  stalls 
of  a  stable,  afibrded  some  degree  of  privacy.  Here, 
rude  couches  were  prepared,  and  bear  and  deer  skins 
spread;  while  above,  the  ripened  ears  of  maize,  sus- 
pended in  rows,  formed  a  golden  tapestry.** 


1  Ijaiitau,  Moeurs  des  Sauvages 
Ameriquains,  II.  4-10. 

Frontenac,  in  his  expedition  against 
the  Onondagas,  in  1696,  (see  Of- 
ficial Journal,  Doc.  Hist  New  York, 
I.  332,)  found  one  of  their  villages 
built  in  an  oblong  form,  with  four 
bastions.  The  wall  was  formed  of 
three  rows  of  palisades,  those  of  the 
outer  row  being  forty  or  fitly  feet 
high.  The  usual  figure  of  the  Iro- 
quois villages  was  circular  or  oval, 
and  in  this  instance  the  bastions  were 
no  doubt  the  suggestion  of  some  Eu- 
ropean adviser. 

'•^  Bartram  gives  the  following  ac- 
count of  the  great  council-house  at 
Onondaga,  which  he  visited  in  1743. 

"  We  alighted  at  the  council-house, 
where  the  chiefs  worn  already  assem- 
bled to  receive  us,  which  they  did 


with  a  grave,  chearful  complaisance, 
according  to  their  custom;  they 
shew'd  us  where  to  lay  our  baggage, 
and  repose  ourselves  during  our  stay 
with  them ;  which  was  in  the  two  end 
apartments  of  this  large  house.  The 
Indians  that  came  with  us  were 
placed  over  against  us.  This  cabin 
is  about  eighty  feet  long  and  seven- 
teen broad,  the  common  passage  six 
feet  wide,  and  the  apartments  on 
each  side  five  feet,  raised  a  foot  above 
the  passage  by  a  long  sapling,  hewe4 
square,  and  fitted  with  joists  that  go 
from  it  to  the  back  of  the  house ;  on 
these  joists  they  lay  large  pieces  of 
bark,  and  on  extraordinary  occasions 
spread  mats  made  of  rushes  :  this  fa- 
vor we  had ;  on  these  floors  they  set 
or  lye  down,  every  one  as  he  will ; 
the  apartments  are  divided  from  each 


1 


r< 


14 


•1 


16 


THE  IROQUOIS. 


[ClIAl'.  I. 


11 : 


In  the  long  evenings  of  midwinter,  when  in  the 
wilderness  without  the  trees  cracked  with  biting  cold, 
jmd  the  forest  paths  were  clogged  with  snow,  then, 
around  the  lodge-fires  of  the  Iroquois,  warriors,  squaws, 
and  restless  naked  children  were  clustered  in  social 
groups,  each  dark  face  brightening  in  the  fickle  fire- 
light, while,  with  jest  and  laugh,  the  pipe  passed  round 
from  hand  to  hand.  Perhaps  some  shrivelled  old  war- 
rior, the  story-teller  of  the  tribe,  recounted  to  atten- 
tive ears  the  deeds  of  ancient  heroism,  legends  of  spirits 
and  monsters,  or  tales  of  witches  and  vampires  —  super- 
stitions not  less  rife  among  this  all-believing  race,  than 
among  the  nations  of  the  transatlantic  world.         - 

The  life  of  the  Iroquois,  though  void  of  those  mul- 
tiplying phases  which  vary  the  routine  of  civilized 
existence,  was  one  of  sharp  excitement  and  sudden 
contrast.  The  chase,  the  war-path,  the  dance,  the 
festival,  the  game  of  hazard,  the  race  of  political  am- 
bition, all  had  their  votaries.  When  the  assembled 
sachems  had  resolved  on  war  against  some  foreign 
tribe,  and  when,  from  their  great  council-house  of  bark, 
in  the  Valley  of  Onondaga,  their  messengers  had  gone 
forth  to  invite  the  warriors  to  arms,  then  from  east 
to  west,  through  the  farthest  bounds  of  the  confed- 
eracy, a  thousand  warlike  hearts  caught  up  the  sum- 


other  by  boards  or  bark,  six  or  seven 
fool  long,  from  the  lower  floor  to  the 
upper,  on  which  they  put  their  lum- 
ber, when  they  have  eaten  their  houi- 
ony,  as  they  set  in  each  apartment 
before  the  fire ;  they  can  put  the  bowl 
over  head,  having  not  above  five  foot 
to  reach  ;  they  set  on  the  floor  some- 
times at  each  end,  but  mostly  at  one  ; 
they  have  a  shed  to  put  their  wood 
into  in  the  winter,  or  in  tho  summer, 
to  set  to  converse  or  play,  that  has  a 
door  to  the  south ;  all  the  sides  and 


roof  of  the  cabin  are  made  of  bark, 
bound  fast  to  poles  set  in  the  ground. 
and   bent  round  on  the  top,  or  si  t 
aflatt,  for  the  roof,  ae  we  set  our  rafters ; 
over  each  fireplace  they  leave  a  hole : 
to  let  out  the  smoke,  which,  in  rainy 
weather,  they  cover  with  a  piece  ot 
bark,  and  this  they  can  easily  ron(  h 
with  a  polo  to  push  it  on  one  side  orj 
quite  over  the  hole  ;  after  this  model  j 
are  most  of  their  cabins  built."  —  ] 
Bartram,  Ohservatiotis,  40. 


say,  with 


Chap.  I.] 


THE  WAR-PATH. 


11 


mons  with  glad  alacrity.  With  fasting  and  praying, 
and  consulting  dreams  and  omens ;  with  invoking  the 
war-god,  and  dancing  the  frantic  war-dance,  the  war- 
riors sought  to  insure  the  triumph  of  their  arms; 
and,  these  strange  rites  concluded,  they  began  their 
stealthy  progress,  full  of  confidence,  through  the  de- 
vious pathways  of  the  forest.  For  days  and  weeks,  m 
anxious  expectation,  the  villagers  await  the  result. 
And  now,  as  evening  closes,  a  shrill,  wild  cry,  pealing 
from  afar,  over  the  darkening  forest,  proclaims  the  re- 
turn of  the  victorious  warriors.  The  village  is  alive 
with  sudden  commotion;  and  snatching  sticks  and 
stones,  knives  and  hatchets,  men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, yellmg  like  fiends  let  loose,  swarm  out  of:  the 
narrow  portal,  to  visit  upon  the  miserable  captives  a 
foretaste  of  the  deadlier  torments  in  store  for  them, 
.ind  noAv,  the  black  arches  of  the  forest  glow  with 
the  fires  of  death ;  and  with  brandished  torch  and 
firebrand  the  frenzied  multitude  close  around  then- 
\ictim.  The  pen  shrinks  to  write,  the  heart  sickens 
to  conceive,  the  fierceness  of  his  agony ;  yet  still,  amid 
the  dm  of  his  tormentors,  rises  his  clear  voice  of  sconi 
and  defiance.  The  work  is  done ;  the  blackened  trunk 
is  flung  to  the  dcgs,  tmd,  with  clamorous  shouts  and 
liootings,  the  murderers  seek  to  drive  away  the  spirit 
of  their  victim.^       ;    ?  v:  v  v^.  .         ..■;  i   . 

The  Iroquois  reckoned  these  barbarities  among  their 


1  "  Being  at  this  place  the  17  of 
June,  there  came  fifty  prisoners  from 
the  soutli-westward.  They  were  of 
two  nations,  some  whereof  have  few 
guns;  the  other  none  at  all.  One 
nation  is  about  ten  days'  journey  from 
any  Christians,  and  trade  onely  with 
one  greatt  house,  nott  farr  from  tlie 
□ea,  and  the  otiier  trade  only,  as  they 
say,  with  a  black  people.    This  day 

3 


of  Uiem  was  burnt  two  women,  and 
a  man  and  a  child  killed  with  a  stone. 
Att  night  we  heard  a  great  noyse  as 
if  y°  nouses  had  all  lallen,  butt  itt 
was  only  y°  inhabitants  driving  away 
y*  ghosts  of  y  murthered. 

"The  18'"  going  to  Canagorah, 
tliat  day  there  were  most  cruelly 
burnt  four  men,  four  women,  and  one 
boy.    The  cruelty  laeted  aboutt  seven 

B* 


18 


THE  IROQUOIS. 


[Chap.  I. 


i'-"] 


most  exquisite  enjoyments;  and  yet  they  had  other 
sources  of  pleasure,  which  made  up  in  frequency  and 
in  innocence  all  that  they  lacked  in  intensity.  Each 
passing  season  had  its  feast?  and  dances,  often  mingling 
religion  with  social  pastime.  The  young  had  theii- 
frolics  and  merry-makings;  and  the  old  had  their  no 
less  frequent  councils,  where  conversation  and  laugh- 
ter alternated  with  grave  deliberations  for  the  pub- 
lic weal.  There  were  also  stated  periods  marked  by 
the  recurrence  of  momentous  ceremonies,  in  which  the 
whole  community  took  pjirt — the  mystic  sacrifice 
of  the  dogs,  the  wild  orgies  of  the  dream  feast,  and 
the  loathsome  festival  of  the  exhumation  of  the  dead. 
Yet,  in  the  intervals  of  war  and  hunting,  these  mul- 
tiform occupations  would  often  fail;  and,  while  the 
wom.en  were  toiling  in  the  cornfields,  the  lazy  warriors 
vainly  sought  relief  from  the  scanty  resources  of  their 
own  minds,  and  beguiled  the  hours  with  smoking  or 
sleeping,  with  gambling  or  gallantry.^ 

If  we  seek  for  a  single  trait  preeminently  charac- 
teristic of  the  Iroquois,  we  shall  find  it  in  that  bound- 
less pride  which  impelled  them  to  style  themselves, 
not  inaptly  as  regards  their  own  race,  "  the  men  sur- 
passing all  others."  ^  "  Must  I,"  exclaimed  one  of  theii- 
great  warriors,  as  he  fell  Avounded  among  a  crowd  of 
Algonquins, — "  must  I,  who  have  made  the  whole  earth 
tremble,  now  die  by  the  hands  of  children  ? "  Their 
power  kept  pace  with  their  pride.     Their  war-parties 


hours.  When  they  were  ahnost  dead 
lettin^r  them  loose  to  the  mercy  of 
y*  boys,  and  taking  the  hearts  of  such 
as  were  dead  to  feast  on."  —  Grcen- 
halgh,  Journal,  1677. 

I  For  an  account  of  the  habits  and 
custom"  of  the  Ironuois.  the  follow- 
tnjr  worku,  besidct  those  already 
cited,  may  be  referred  to:  — 


Charlevoix,  Letters  to  the  Duchess 
of  Lesdiguieres ;  Champlain,  Voyages 
de  la  Nouv.  Prance;  Clark,  Hist. 
Onondaga,  I.,  and  several  volumep 
of  the  Jesuit  Relations,  especially 
those  of  1656-7  and  1659-'60. 

3  This  is  Colden's  translation  of 
the  word  Ongwehonwe,  one  of  the 
names  of  the  Iroquois. 


Chap.  I.] 


THE  HURONS  OR  WYAJSTDOTS. 


19 


!   a 


roamed  over  half  America,  and  their  name  was  a  terror 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Mississippi;  but,  when  we 
ask  the  numerical  strength  of  the  dreaded  confederacy, 
when  we  discover  that,  m  the  days  of  their  greatest 
triumphs,  their  united  cantons  could  not  have  mus- 
tered four  thousand  warriors,  we  stand  amazed  at  the 
folly  and  dissension  Avhich  left  so  vast  a  region  the 
prey  of  a  handful  of  bold  marauders.  Of  the  cities 
an^  villages  now  so  thickly  scattered  over  the  lost 
domain  of  the  Iroquois,  a  single  one  might  boast  a 
more  numerous  population  than  all  the  five  united 
tribes.^ 

From  this  remarkable  people,  who  with  all  the  fe- 
rocity of  their  race  blended  heroic  virtues  and  marked 
endowments  of  intellect,  I  pass  to  other  members  of 
the  same  great  family,  whose  different  fortunes  may 
perhaps  be  ascribed  rather  to  the  force  of  circum- 
stance, than  to  any  intrinsic  inferiority. 

The  peninsula  between  the  Lakes  Huron,  Erie,  and 
Ontario  was  occupied  by  two  distinct  peoples,  speak- 
ing dialects  of  the  Iroquois  tongue.  The  Hurons  or 
Wyandots,  mcluding  the  formidable  bands  called  by  tlio 
French  the   Dionondadies,  or  Tobacco  Nation,*^  dwelt 


1  La  Hontan  estimated  the  Iro- 
quois at  from  five  thousand  to  seven 
thousand  fighting  men  ;  but  his  means 
of  infoi  nation  were  very  imperfect, 
and  the  same  may  be  said  of  several 
other  French  writers,  who  have  over- 
rated the  force  of  the  confederacy.  In 
1677, the  English  sent  one  Greenhalgh 
to  ascertain  their  numbers.  He  visited 
ill!  their  towns  and  villages,  and  re- 
ported their  aggregate  force  at  two 
thousand  one  liundred  and  fifty  fight- 
ing men.  The  report  of  Colonel 
Coursey,  agent  from  Virginia,  at 
about  the  same  period,  closely  cor- 
roopouuB  witli  this  statement.  Green- 
halgh's    Journal  will    be  found   in    Tobacco. 


Chalmers'  Political  Annals,  and  in 
the  Documentary  History  of  New 
York.  Subsequent  estimates,  up  to 
the  period  of  the  revolution,  when 
their  strength  had  much  declined, 
vary  from  twelve  hundred  to  two 
thousand  one  hundred  and  twenty. 
Most  of  these  estimates  are  given  by 
Clinton,  in  his  Discourse  on  the  Five 
Nations,  and  several  by  Jefferson,  in 
his  Notes  on  Virginia. 

**  Hurons,  Wyandots,  Yendots, 
Ouendaets,  Quatogies. 

The  Dionondadies  are  also  de- 
signated by  the  following    names : 


% 


?l 


c< 


■■■■  s:i 


■•)' 


I 


20 


THE  HUEONS  OR  WYANDOTS. 


[Chap.  I, 


among  the  forests  which  bordered  the  eastern  shores 
of  the  fresh  water  sea,  to  which  they  have  left  their 
name ;  while  the  neutral  nation,  so  called  from  theu- 
neutrality  in  the  war  between  the  Ilurons  and  the 
Five  Nations,  inhabited  the  northern  shores  of  Lake 
Erie,  and  even  extended  their  eastern  flank  across  the 
strait  of  Niagara.    •  ' 

The  population  of  the  Hurons  has  been  variously 
stated  at  from  ten  thousand  to  thirty  thousand  souls, 
but  probably  did  not  exceed  the  former  estimate.  The 
Franciscans  and  the  Jesuits  were  early  among  them, 
and  from  their  copious  descriptions  it  is  apparent 
that  in  legends  and  superstitions,  manners  and  hab- 
its, religious  observances  and  social  customs,  this  peo- 
ple were  closely  assimilated  to  their  brethren  of  the 
Five  Nations.  Their  capacious  dwellings  of  bark, 
and  their  palisaded  forts,  seemed  copied  after  the  same 
model.'  Like  the  Five  Nations,  they  were  divided  into 
tribes,  and  cross-divided  into  totemic  clans;  and,  as 
with  them,  the  office  of  sachem  descended  in  the  fe- 
male line.  The  same  crude  materials  of  a  political 
fabric  were  to  be  found  in  both ;  but,  unlike  the  Iro- 
quois, the  Wyandots  had  not  as  yet  wrought  them 
into  a  system,  and  woven  them  into  an  harmonious 
M'holc. 

Like  the  Five  Nations,  the  Wyandots  were  in  some 
measure  an  agricultural  people ;  they  bartered  the  sur- 
plus products  of  their  maize  fields  to  surrounding  tribes, 
usually  receiving  fisli  in  exchange ;  and  this  traffic  was 
so  considerable,  that  the  Jesuits  stvled  their  countiT 
the  Granary  of  the  Algonquins.*^ 


ron. 


1  See  Sagard,  Iliirons,  115.  into  u  slight  mistake  when  he  says 

9  Bancroti,  in  his  chapter  on  the    that  no  trade  was  carried  on  by  any 

Indians  east  of  the  ?»iissiasippi,  falls    of  the  tribes.     For  an  account  of  thr; 


Chap.  I.] 


THE  NEUTRAL  NATION. 


21, 


Their  prosperity  was  rudely  broken  by  the  rancorous 
hostilities  of  the  Five  Nations;  for  though  the  con- 
flicting parties  were  not  ill  matched  in  point  of  num- 
bers, yet  the  united  counsels  and  ferocious  energies 
of  the  confederacy  swept  all  before  them.  In  the 
year  1649,  in  the  depth  of  Avinter,  their  warriors  in- 
vaded the  country  of  the  Wyandots,  stormed  their 
largest  villages,  and  involved  all  within  in  indiscrimi- 
nate slaughter.^  The  survivors  fled  in  panic  terror, 
and  the  whole  r.  tion  was  dispersed  and  broken. 

Some  found  retuge  among  the  French  of  Canada, 
where,  at  the  village  of  Lorette,  near  Quebec,  their 
descendants  still  remain  ;  others  were  incorporated 
with  their  conquerors;  while  others  again  fled  north- 
ward, beyond  Lake  Superior,  and  sought  an  asylum 
among  the  desolate  wastes  which  bordered  on  the 
north-eastern  bands  of  the  Dahcotah.  Driven  back  by 
those  fierce  bison  hunters,  they  next  established  them- 
selves about  the  outlet  of  Lake  Superior,  and  the 
shores  and  islands  in  the  northern  parts  of  Lake  Hu- 
ron. Thence,  about  the  year  1680,  they  descended  to 
Detroit,  where  they  formed  a  permanent  settlement,  and 
where,  by  their  superior  valor,  capacity,  and  address, 
they  soon  acquired  a  marvellous  ascendency  over  the 
surrounding  Algonquins. 

The  ruin  of  the  Neutral  Nation  followed  close  on 
that  of  the  Wyandots,  to  whom,  according  to  Jesuit 
authority,  they  bore  an  exact  resemblance  in  charac- 
ter pnd  manners.^  The  Senecas  soon  found  means  to 
pick  a  quarrel  with  them;    they  were  assailed  by  all 


t.O 


I  if 
i  1*' 

i  if;* 


i  K..1 


■1* 

1  'f 


I  ^i^'lJ 


traffic  between  the  Hurons  and  Al-  ~  According  to  Lallemant,  the  pop- 

gonquins,  see  Merc  ier,  Relation  des  ulationof  the  Neutral  Nation  aiiiount- 

Hiiron3,  1637,  p.  171 .  ed  to  at  least  twelve  thousand ;  but  the 

1  Charlevoix.  Nouvelle  Fiance.  I.  estimate  is  probably  exaffffcrated.  — 

290-295.  Relation  des  Hurons,  1641,"?.  50. 


22 


THE  ANDASTES  AND  ERIES. 


[Chap.  I. 


I  fill 


the  strength  of  the  insatiable  confederacy,  and  within  a 
few  years  their  destruction  as  a  nation  was  complete. 

South  of  Lake  Erie  dwelt  two  potent  ni  embers  of 
the  Iroquois  family.  The  Andastes  built  their  vil- 
lages along  the  valleys  of  the  Alleghany  and  the  Up- 
per Ohio;  while  the  Erigas,  or  Eries,  occupied  the 
borders  of  the  lake  which  still  retains  their  name. 
Of  these  two  nations  little  is  known,  for  the  Jesuits 
had  no  missions  among  them,  and  few  traces  of  them 
survive  beyond  their  names  and  the  record  of  theii' 
destruction.  The  war  with  the  "Wyandots  was  scarcely 
over,  when  the  Five  Nations  turned  their  fratricidal 
arais  against  their  Erie  brethren. 

In  the  year  1655,  using  their  canoes  as  scaling- 
ladders,  they  stormed  the  Erie  strongholds,  leaped 
down  like  tigers  among  the  defenders,  and  butchered 
them  without  mercy.^  The  greater  part  of  the  nation 
was  involved  in  the  massacre,  and  the  remnant  was 
incorporated  with  the  conquerors,  or  with  other  tribes, 
to  which  they  fled  for  refuge.  The  ruin  of  the  An- 
dastes came  next  in  turn ;  but  this  brave  people  fought 
for  twenty  years  against  their  inexorable  assailants, 
and  their  destruction  was  not  consummated  until  the 
year  1672,  when  they  shared  the  fate  of  the  rest.** 

Thus,  within  less  than  a  quarter  of  a  century,  four 
nations,  the  most  brave  and  powerful  of  the  North 
American  savages,  sank  before  the  amis  of  the  con- 
federates.    Nor  did  theij*  triumphs  end  here.     Within 


1  An  account  of  the  destruction  of  on  this  subject,  as  related  to  the  wri- 
the Erics,  drawn  from  the  Jesuit  wri-  ter  by  a  chief  of  the  Cayugas,  do  not 
ters,  may  be  found  in  an  interesting  agree  with  the  narratives  of  the  Jes- 
lectui'e,  delivered  by  O.  H.  Marsiiall,  uits. 

Esq.,  and  publisiied  in  the  Western  '-  Charlevoix,  Nouvelle  France,  I. 

Literary    Messenger    for    May   and  443. 
June,  1849.    Tiie  Iroquoia  traditions 


ClIAP.  I.] 


ADOPTION  OF  PRISONEKS. 


23 


the  same  short  space  they  subdued  their  southern 
neighbors  the  Lenape,^  the  leadmg  members  of  the 
Algonquin  family,  and  oxpelled  the  Ottawas,  a  nu- 
merous people  of  the  same  lineage,  from  the  borders 
of  the  river  which  bears  their  name.  In  the  north, 
the  west,  and  the  south,  their  conquests  embraced  every 
adjacent  tribe;  and  meanwhile  their  war  parties  were 
harassing  the  French  of  Canada  with  reiterated  in- 
roads, and  yelling  the  war-whoop  imder  the  very  walls 
of  Quebec.  ,  : .    , 

They  were  the  worst  of  conquerors.  Inordinate 
pride,  the  lust  of  blood  and  dominion,  were  the  main- 
springs of  their  warfare ;  and  their  victories  were 
stained  with  every  excess  of  savage  passion.  That 
their  triumphs  must  have  cost  them  dear;  that,  in 
spite  of  their  cautious  tactics,  these  multiplied  con- 
flicts must  have  greatly  abridged  their  strength,  would 
appear  inevitable.  Their  losses  were,  in  fact,  consid- 
erable ;  but  every  breach  was  repaired  by  means  of  a 
practice  which  they,  in  common  with  other  tribes,  con- 
stantly adhered  to.  When  their  vengeance  was  glut- 
ted by  the  sacrifice  of  a  sufficient  number  of  captives, 
they  spared  the  lives  of  the  remainder,  and  adopted 
them  as  members  of  their  confederated  tribes,  sepa- 
rating wives  from  husbands,  and  children  from  parents, 
and  distributing  them  among  different  villages,  in  or- 
der that  old  ties  and  associations  might  be  more 
completely  broken  up.  This  policy,  as  Schoolcraft 
informs  us,  was  designated  among  them  by  a  name 
which  signifies  "flesh  cut  into  pieces  and  scattered 
among  the  tribes." 

In  the  years  1714-15,  the  confederacy  received  a 


tl 


If 


1  Gallatin  places  the  final  subjection  of  the  Lenapc  at  about  the  year 
1750.  —  Synopsis,  48. 


u 


lltOQUOIS  TUD3ES  — THEIR  CIIAEACTER.       [Chap.  I 


great  accession  of  strengtli.  Southwards,  about  the 
head  waters  of  the  Rivers  Neuse  and  Tar,  and  separated 
from  their  kindred  tribes  by  intervening  Algonquin 
communities,  dwelt  the  Tuscaroras,  a  warlike  people 
Ijelonging  to  the  generic  stock  of  the  Iroquois.  The 
wrongs  inflicted  by  white  settlers,  and  their  own  un- 
distinguishing  vengeance,  involved  them  in  a  war  with 
the  colonists,  which  resulted  in  their  defeat  and  ex- 
pulsion. They  emigrated  to  the  Five  Nations,  whose 
allies  they  had  been  in  former  wars  with  southern 
tribes,  and  who  now  gladly  received  them,  admitting 
them,  as  a  sixth  nation,  into  their  confederacy,  and 
assigning  to  their  sachems  a  seat  in  the  council-house 
at  Onondaga. 

It  is  a  remark  of  Gallatin,  that,  in  their  career  of 
conquest,  the  Five  Nations  encountered  more  stubborn 
resistance  from  the  tribes  of  their  own  famUy,  than 
from  those  of  a  different  lineage.  In  truth,  all  the 
scions  of  this  warlike  stock  seem  endued  with  singu- 
lar vitality  and  force,  and  among  them  we  must  seek 
for  the  best  type  of  the  Indian  character.  Few  tribes 
could  match  them  in  prowess  and  constancy,  in  moral 
energy  and  intellectual  vigor.  The  Jesuits  remarked 
that  they  were  more  intelligent,  yet  less  tractable,  than 
other  savages ;  and  Charlevoix  observes  that,  though 
the  Algonquins  were  readily  converted,  they  made  but 
fickle  proselytes ;  while  the  Hiu'ons,  though  not  easily 
won  over  to  the  church,  were  far  more  faithful  in 
their  adherence.^  Of  this  tribe,  the  Hurons  or  Wy- 
andots,  a  candid  and  experienced  observer  declares, 
that  of  all  the  Indians  with  whom  he  was  conversant, 
they  alone   held  it  disgraceful  to  turn   from  the  face 


>  Nouvelle  France.  1. 19G. 


Chaf.  L] 


THE  ALGONQUINS. 


3ft 


of  an  enemy  when   the  fortunes   of   the   fight   were 
adverse.^ 

Besides  these  inherent  qualities,  the  tribes  of  the 
Iroquois  race  derived  great  advantages  from  their  su- 
perior social  organization.  They  were  all,  more  or 
less,  tillers  of  the  soU,  and  were  thus  enabled  to  con- 
centrate a  more  numerous  population  than  the  scat- 
tered tribes  who  live  by  the  chase  alone.  In  their 
well-peopled  and  well-constructed  vil3.ages,  they  dwelt 
together  the  greater  part  of  the  year ;  and  thence  the 
religious  rites  and  social  and  political  usages,  which 
elsewhere  existed  only  in  the  germ,  attained  among 
them  a  full  and  perfect  development.  Yet  these  ad- 
vantages were  not  without  alloy,  and  the  Jesuits  were 
not  slow  to  remark  that  the  stationary  and  thriving 
Iroquois  were  more  loose  in  their  observance  of  social 
ties,  than  the  wandering  and  starving  savages  of  the 


norti . 


THE  ALGONQUIN  FAMILY. 


Except  the  detached  nation  of  the  Tuscaroras,  and 
a  few  smaller  tribes  adhering  to  them,  the  Iroquois 
family  were  confined  to  the  region  south  of  the  Lakes 
Erie  and  Ontario,  and  the  peninsula  east  of  Lake 
Huron.  They  formed,  as  it  were,  an  island  in  the 
vast  expanse  of  Algonquin  population,  extending  fi-om 
Hudson's  Bay  on  the  north  to  the  Carolinas  on  the 
south;  fiom  the  Atlantic  on  the  east  to  the  Missis- 
sippi and  Lake  Winnipeg   on  the  west.     They  were 


'  William  Henry  Harrison,  Dis-  wee  did :  they  made  great  feasts  and 

course  on  the  Aborigines  of  the  Ohio,  dancing,  and  invited  us  y'  when  all 

See  Ohio  Hist.  Trans.  Part  Second,  y*  maides  were  togetlier,  both  wee 

!•  257.  and  our  Indyana  might  choose  such 

'■^  "  Here  y'  Indyans  were  very  de-  as  lyked  us  to  ly  wi»ii."  —  Green- 

sirous  to  see  us  ride  our  horses,  w'*^  hal?h.  Journal. 


'■  :  ^r 


'i 

In 


26 


THE  ALGONQUINS. 


[Cbaf.  L 


Algoiiquins  who  greeted  Jacques  Cartier,  as  his  ships 
ascended  the  St.  Lawrence.  The  first  British  colonists 
found  savages  of  the  same  race  hunting  and  fishing 
along  the  coasts  and  inlets  of  Vu-ginia;  and  it  was 
the  daughter  of  an  Algonquin  chief  who  interceded 
with  her  father  for  the  life  of  the  adventurous  Eng- 
lishman. They  were  Algonquins  who,  under  Sassacus 
the  Pequot,  and  Philip  of  Mount  Hope,  waged  deadly 
war  against  the  Puiitans  of  New  England;  who  dwelt 
at  Penacook  imder  the  rule  of  the  great  magician, 
Passaconaway,  and  trembled  before  the  evil  spirits  of 
the  Crystal  Hills;  and  who  sang  aves  and  told  their 
beads  in  the  forest  chapel  of  Father  Rasles,  by  the 
banks  of  the  Kennebec.  They  were  Algonquins  who, 
under  the  great  tree  at  Kensington,  made  the  cove- 
nant of  peace  with  "William  Penn ;  and  when  French 
Jesuits  and  fur-traders  explored  the  Wabash  and  the 
Ohio,  they  found  their  valleys  tenanted  by  the  same 
far-extended  race.  At  the  present  day,  the  traveller, 
perchance,  may  find  them  pitching  their  bark  lodges 
along  the  beach  at  Mackinaw,  spearing  fish  among 
the  boiling  rapids  of  St.  Mary's,  or  skimming  the 
waves  of  Lake  Superior  in  their  birch  canoes. 
'-  Of  all  the  members  o£  the  Algonquin  family,  those 
called  by  the  English  the  Delawares,  by  the  French 
the  Loups,  and  by  themselves  Lenni  Lenape,  or  Origi- 
nal Men.  hold  the  first  claim  to  attention;  for  their 
traditions  declare  them  to  be  the  parent  stem  whence 
other  Algonquin  tribes  have  sprung.  The  latter  rec- 
ogniz(Ml  the  claim,  and  at  all  solemn  councils,  accorded 
to  the  ancestral  tribe  the  title  of  Grandfather.* 


1  'fhe  Lenape,  on  their  part,  call  Brothem ;  but  they  oonfeas  the  supe- 
tho  other  Algonguin  tribe"  GhiHren,  riority  of  the  Wyandots  and  the  Five 
Grandchildren,  Nephews,  or  Younger    Nations,  by  yielding  them  the  title  ot 


Chat.  1] 


THE  LENNI  LENAPE. 


27 


The  first  European  colonists  found  tlie  conical 
lodges  of  the  Lenape  clustered  in  frequent  groups 
about  the  waters  of  the  Delaware  and  its  tributary 
streams,  within  the  present  limits  of  New  Jersey  and 
Eastern  Pennsylvania.  The  nation  was  separated  into 
three  divisionw,  and  three  sachems  formed  a  trium- 
virate, who,  with  the  council  of  old  men,  regulated 
all  its  affairs.^  They  were,  in  some  small  measure,  an 
agricultural  people ;  but  fishing  and  the  chase  were 
their  chief  dependence,  and  through  a  great  part  of 
the  year  they  were  scattered  abroad,  among  forests  and 
streams,  in  search  of  sustenance. 

When  William  Penn  held  his  far-famed  council  with 
the  sachems  of  the  Lenape,  he  extended  the  hand  of 
brotherhood  to  a  people  as  unwarlike  in  their  habits 
as  his  own  pacific  followers.  This  is  by  no  means 
to  be  ascribed  to  any  inborn  love  of  peace.  The 
Lenape  were  then  in  a  state  of  degrading  vassalage, 
victims  to  the  domineering  power  of  the  Five  Nations, 
who,  that  they  might  drain  to  the  dregs  the  cup  of 
liumiliation,  had  forced  them  to  assume  the  name  of 
Women,  and  ff  _,o  the  use  of  arms.**  Dwelling  im- 
der  the  shadow  of  the  tyrannical  confederacy,  they 
were  long  iiiiabk'  to  wipe  out  the  blot ;  but  at  length, 
pushed  from  their  ancient  seats  by  the  encroachments 
of  white  men,  and  removed  westward,  partially  be- 
yond tlie  reach  of  their  conquerors,  their  native  sphit 


! 
i '  I 


IJ 


Uncles.  They,  in  return,  call  the 
Lenape  Nephews,  or  more  frequently 
Cousins. 

•  Loskiel,  Part  I.  130. 

-  The  story  told  by  the  Lenape 
tliemselves,  and  recorded  with  the 
itmost  good  faith  by  Loskiel  and 
Heckewelder,  that  the  Five  Nations 
had  not  conquered  them,  but,  by  a 
cunninsif  artifice;  had  cheated  them 


into  subjection,  a  wholly  unworthy  of 
credit  It  is  not  to  be  believed  that 
a  people  so  acute  and  suspicious 
could  be  the  dunes  of  so  palpable  a 
trick;  and  it  is  equally  incredible 
that  a  high-spirited  tribe  could  be  in- 
duced, by  the  most  persuasive  rhet- 
oric, to  assume  the  name  of  Women, 
which  in  Indian  eyes  is  the  last  con- 
iGssicn  Ot  abjcCt  auaseiueiit. 


28 


THE  ALGONQUINS. 


[Chap.  I. 


began  to  revive,  and  they  assumed  a  tone  of  unwonted 
defiance.  During  the  Old  French  War  they  resumed 
the  use  of  arms,  and  while  the  Five  Nations  fought 
for  the  English,  they  espoused  the  cause  of  France. 
At  the  opening  of  the  revolution,  they  boldly  asserted 
their  j&reedom  from  the  yoke  of  their  conquerors ;  and 
a  few  years  after,  the  Five  Nations  confessed,  at  a 
public  council,  that  the  Lenape  were  no  longer  women, 
but  men.^  Ever  since  that  period,  they  have  stood  in 
high  repute  for  bravery,  generosity,  and  all  the  savage 
virtues;  and  the  settlers  of  the  frontier  have  often 
found,  to  their  cost,  that  the  women  of  the  Iroquois 
have  been  transformed  into  a  race  of  formidable  war- 
riors. At  the  present  day,  the  small  remnant  set- 
tled beyond  the  Mississippi  are  among  the  bravest 
marauders  of  the  west.  Their  war-parties  pierce  the 
farthest  wilds  of  the  Rocky  Moimtains ;  and  the  prairie 
traveller  may  sometimes  meet  the  Delaware  warrior 
returning  from  a  successful  foray,  a  gaudy  handker- 
chief bound  about  his  brows,  his  snake  locks  fluttering 
in  the  wind,  his  rifle  resting  across  his  saddle-bow, 
while  the  tarnished  and  begrimed  equipments  of  his 
half-wild  horse  bear  witness  that  the  imscrupulous 
rider  has  waylaid  and  plundered  some  Mexican  cavalier. 
Adjacent  to  the  Lenape,  and  associated  with  them 
in  some  of  the  most  momentous  passages  of  their  his- 
tory, dwelt  the  Shawanoes,  the  Chaouanons  of  the 
French,  a  tribe  of  bold,  roving,  and  adventurous  spirit. 
Their  eccentric  wanderings,  their  sudden  appearances 
and  disappearances,  perplex  the  antiquary,  and  defy 
research;  but  from  various  scattered  notices,  we  may 
gather    that  at   an   early   period,   they   occupied  the 


1  Heckewelder,  Hist  Ind.  Nat  53. 


Chap.  IJ 


THE  MIAMIS  — THE  ILLINOIS. 


29 


valley  of  the  Ohio ;  that,  becoming  embroiled  with  the 
Five  Nations,  they  shared  the  defeat  of  the  Andastes, 
and  about  the  year  1672  fled  to  escape  destruction. 
Some  found  an  asylum  in  the  country  of  the  Lenape, 
where  they  lived  tenants  at  will  of  the  Five  Nations ; 
others  sought  refuge  in  the  Carolinas  and  Florida, 
where,  true  to  theu*  native  instincts,  they  soon  came 
to  blows  with  the  owners  of  the  soil.  Again,  turning 
northwards,  they  formed  new  settlements  in  the  valley 
of  the  Ohio,  where  they  were  now  suffered  to  dwell 
in  peace,  and  where,  at  a  later  period,  they  were 
joined  by  such  of  their  brethren  as  ha<i  found  refuge 
among  the  Lenape.*  >    ■ 

Of  the  tribes  which,  single  and  detached,  or  co- 
hering in  loose  confederacies,  dwelt  within  the  limits 
of  Lower  Canada,  Acadia,  and  New  England,  it  is 
needless  to  speak ;  for  they  offered  no  distinctive  traits 
demanding  notice.  Passing  the  country  of  the  Lenape 
and  the  Shawanoes,  and  descending  the  Ohio,  the 
traveller  would  have  found  its  valley  chiefly  occupied 
by  two  nations,  the  Miamis  or  Twightwees,  on  the 
Wabash  and  its  branches,  and  the  Illinois,  who  dwelt 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  river  to  which  they  have 
given  their  name.  Though  never  subjugated,  as  were 
the  Lena|)c,  both  the  Miamis  and  the  Illinois  were 
reduced  to  the  last  extremity  by  the  repeated  attacks 
of  the  Five  Nations;  and  the  Illinois,  in  particular, 
suffered  so  much  by  these  and  other  wars,  that  the 
population  of  ten  or  twelve  thousand,  ascribed  to 
them  by  the  early  French  writers,  had  dwindled,  dur- 
ing the  first  quarter  of  the  eighteenth  century,  to  a 


r 


1  The   evidence   concerning  the    65.    See  also  Drake,  Life  of  Tecum- 
movements  of  the  Shawanoes  is  well    seh,  10. 


30 


THE  ALGONQUINS. 


[Chap.  I 


few  small  villages.^  According  to  Marest,  they  were 
a  people  sunk  in  sloth  and  licentiousness;  but  that 
priestly  father  had  suffered  much  at  their  hands,  and 
viewed  them  with  a  jaundiced  eye.  Their  agriculture 
was  not  contemptible;  they  had  permanent  dwellings 
as  well  as  portable  lodges;  and  though  wandering 
through  many  months  of  the  year  among  their  broad 
prairies  and  forests,  there  were  seasons  when  their 
whole  population  was  gathered,  with  feastings  and 
merry-makings,  within  the  limits  of  their  villages. 

Turning  his  course  northward,  traversing  the  Lakes 
Michigan  and  Superior,  and  skirting  the  western  mar- 
gin of  Lake  Huron,  the  voyager  woidd  have  found 
the  solitudes  of  the  wild  waste  around  him  broken 
by  scattered  lodges  of  the  Ojibwas,  Pottawattamies, 
and  Ottawas.  About  the  bays  and  rivers  west  of 
Lake  Michigan,  he  would  have  seen  the  Sacs,  the 
Foxes,  and  the  Menomonies;  and  penetrating  the 
frozen  wilderness  of  the  north,  he  would  have  been 
welcomed  by  the  rude  hospitality  of  the  wandering 
Knisteneaux. 

The  Ojibwas,  with  their  kindred,  the  Pottawatta- 
mies, and  their  friends  the  Ottawas, — the  latter  of 
whom  were  fugitives  from  the  eastward,  whence  they 
had  fled  from  the  wrath  of  the  Iroquois,  —  were  banded 
into  a  sort  of  confederacy.*^  In  blood  and  language, 
in  manners  and  character,  they  were  closely  allied. 
The  Ojibwas,  by  far  the  most  numerous  of  tlie  three, 
occupied  the  basin  of  liake  Superior,  and  extensive 
adjacent  regions.  In  their  boundaries  the  career  of 
Iroquois  conquest  found  at  length  a  check.     The  fu- 


1  Father  Raslcs,  1723,  says,  that 
there  were  eleven.  Marest,  in  1712, 
Ibund  only  three. 


2  Morse,  Report,  Appendix,  141. 


Chap.  I] 


THE  OJIBWAS. 


31 


gitive  Wyandots  sought  refuge  in  the  Ojibwa  hunting- 
grounds;  and  tradition  relates,  that  at  the  outlet  of 
Lake  Superior,  an  Iroquois  war-party  once  encountered 
a  disastrous  repulse. 

In  their  mode  of  life,  they  were  far  more  rude  than 
the  Iroquois,  or  even  the  southern  Algonquin  tribes. 
The  totemic  system  is  found  among  them  in  its  most 
imperfect  state.  The  original  clans  have  become 
broken  into  fragments,  and  indefinitely  multiplied; 
and  many  of  the  ancient  customs  of  the  institution 
are  but  loosely  regarded.  Agriculture  is  little  known, 
and,  through  summer  and  winter,  they  range  the  wU- 
demess  mth  restless  wandering,  now  gorged  to  reple- 
tion, and  now  perishing  with  want.  In  the  calm 
days  of  summer,  the  Ojibwa  fisherman  pushes  out  his 
birch  canoe  upon  the  great  inland  ocean  of  the  north ; 
V  '  s  he  gazes  down  into  the  pellucid  depths,  he 
i;  r  )  H  like  one  balanced  between  earth  and  sky. 
The  watchful  fish-hawk  circles  above  his  head;  and 
below,  farther  than  his  line  will  reach,  he  sees  the 
trout  glide  shadowy  and  silent  over  the  glimmering 
pebbles.  The  little  islands  on  the  verge  of  the  hori- 
zon seem  now  starting  into  spires,  now  melting  from 
the  sight,  now  shaping  themselves  into  a  thousand 
fantastic  forms,  with  the  strange  mirage  of  the  waters ; 
and  he  fancies  that  the  evil  spirits  of  the  lake  lie 
basking  their  serpent  forms  on  those  unhallowed 
shores.  Again,  he  explores  the  watery  labyrinths 
where  the  stream  sweeps  among  pine-tufted  islands,  or 
runs,  black  and  deep,  beniath  the  shadows  of  moss- 
bearded  firs ;  or  he  lifts  his  canoe  upon  the  sandy 
beach,  and,  while  his  camp-fire  crackles  on  the  grass 
plat,  reclines  beneath  the  trees,  and  smokes  and  laughs 
aw  ly  the  sultry  hours,  in  a  lazy  luxury  of  enjoyment. 


11 

iV-,  ' 

I? 


3 

r' 


32 


THE  ALGONQUINS. 


[Chap.  L 


But  when  winter  descends  upon  the  north,  sealing 
up  the  fountains,  fettering  the  streams,  and  tumirt, 
the  green-robed  forests  to  shivering  nakedness,  then, 
bearing  their  frail  dwellings  on  their  backs,  the  Ojibwa 
family  wan  ler  forth  into  the  wilderness,  cheered  only, 
on  their  dreary  track,  by  the  whistling  of"  the  north 
wind,  and  the  hungry  howl  of  wolves.  By  the  banks 
of  some  frozen  stream,  women  and  children,  men  and 
dogs,  lie  crouched  together  aroimd  the  fire.  They 
spread  their  benumbed  fingers  over  the  embers,  while 
the  wind  shrieks  through  the  fir-trees  like  the  gale 
through  the  rigging  of  a  frigate,  and  the  narrow  con- 
cave of  the  wigwam  sparkles  with  the  frost-work  of 
their  congealed  breath.  In  vain  they  beat  the  magic 
drum,  and  call  upon  their  guardian  manitoes; — ^^the 
wary  moose  keeps  aloof,  the  bear  lies  close  in  his 
hollow  tree,  and  famine  stares  them  in  the  face.  And 
now  the  hunter  can  fight  no  more  against  the  nipping 
cold  and  blinding  sleet.  Stiff  and  stark,  with  haggard 
cheek  and  shrivelled  lip,  he  lies  among  the  snow  drifts ; 
till,  with  tooth  and  claw,  the  famished  wildcat  strives 
in  vain  to  pierce  the  frigid  marble  of  his  limbs.  Such 
harsh  schooling  is  thrown  away  on  the  incorrigible 
mind  of  the  northern  Algonquin.  He  lives  in  misery, 
as  his  fathers  lived  before  him.  Still,  in  the  brief 
hour  of  plenty  he  forgets  the  season  of  want ;  and 
still  the  sleet  and  the  snow  descend  upon  his  house- 
less  head.^  •-■■-i   .  :.ii    -it     ..Uf  .,'•;/     .'    }r 

I  have  thus  passed  in  brief  review  the  more  prom- 
inent of  the  Algonquin  tribes;  those  whose  struggles 


,  r:^!  tv    •y.''.5',i  ■ 


1  See  Tanner,  Long,  and  Henry.  Lower  Canada,  two  hundred  years 
A  companion  of  Tanner  with  the  ago,  was  easeiitially  the  same  with 
accounts   of  the  Jesuit   Le  Jeune    Algonquin  life  on  the  Upper  Lakes 


will  Biiow   uiai  Algcnquin 


in    wiUiin  the  last  half  century. 


Chap.  I] 


THEIR  LEGENDAEY  LOBE.  ' 


hr.'^  sufferings  form  the  theme  of  the  ensuing  History. 
In  ispeakiiig  of  the  Iroquois,  some  of  the  distinctive 
peculiarities  of  the  Algonquins  have  akeady  been 
hinted  at.  It  must  be  admitted  that,  in  moral  sta- 
bility and  intellectual  vigor,  they  are  inferior  to  the 
former;  though  some  of  the  most  conspicuous  off' 
spring  of  the  wilderness,  Metacom,  Tecumseh,  and 
Pontiac  himself,  boasted  their  blood  and  language. 

The  fireside  stories  of  .every  primitive  people  arc 
faithful  reflections  of  the  form  and  coloring  of  the 
national  mind;  and  it  is  no  proof  of  sound  philoso- 
phy to  turn  with  contempt  from  the  study  of  a  fairy 
tale.  The  legendary  lore  of  the  Iroquois,  black  as 
the  midnight  forests,  awful  in  its  gloomy  strength, 
is  but  another  manifestation  of  that  spirit  of  mastery 
which  uprooted  whole  tribes  from  the  earth,  and 
deluged  the  wilderness  with  blood.  The  traditionary 
tales  of  the  Algonquins  wear  a  different  aspect.  The 
credulous  circle  around  an  Ojibwa  lodge-fire  listened 
to  wild  recitals  of  necromancy  and  witchcraft  —  men 
transformed  to  beasts,  and  beasts  transformed  to  men, 
animated  trees,  and  biri^s  who  sj^^oke  with  human' 
tongue.  They  heard  of  malignant  sorcerers  dwelling 
among  the  lonely  islands  of  speU-bound  lakes;  of 
grisly  weendigoes,  and  bloodless  geebi ;  of  evil  manitoes 
lurking  in  the  dens  and  fastnesses  of  the  woods;  of 
pygmy  champions,  diminutive  in  stature,  but  mighty  in 
soul,  who,  by  the  potency  of  charm  and  talisman,  sub- 
dued the  direst  monsters  of  the  waste ;  and  of  heroes, 
who,  not  by  downright  force  and  open  onset,  but  by 
subtle  strategy,  by  trick  or  magic  art,  achieved  mar- 
vellous triumphs  over  the  brute  force  of  their  assail- 
ants. Sometimes  the  tale  will  breathe  a  different 
spirit,  and  tell  of  orphan  children   abandoned  in  the 


34 


RELIGIOUS  BEIJEF  OF  THE  INDIAIfS. 


[Chap.  I. 


heart  of  a  hideous  >vildeniess,  beset  with  fiends  and 
cannibals.  Some  amoured  maiden,  scornful  of  earthly 
suitors,  plights  her  troth  to  the  graceful  manito  of 
tlj.e  grove;  or  bright  aerial  beings,  dwellers  of  the 
sky,  descend  to  tantalize  the  gaze  of  mortals  with 
evanescent  forms  of  loveliness,      ft^:     >  ;  .>       ,":.;•;■ 

The  mighty  giant,  the  God  of  the  Thunder,  who 
made  his  home  among  the  caverns,  beneath  the  cata^ 
ract  of  Niagara,  was  a  conception  which  the  deep 
imagination  of  the  Iroquois  might  fitly  engender.  The 
Algonquins  held  a  simpler  faith,  and  maintained  that 
the  thunder  was  a  bird  who  built  his  nest  on  the  pin- 
nacle of  towering  mountains.  Two  daring  boys  once 
scaled  the  height,  and  thrust  sticks  into  the  eyes  of 
the  portentous  nestlings ;  which  hereupon  flashed  forth 
such  wrathful  scintillations,  that  the  sticks  were  shiv- 
ered to  atoms.^  '  - 

The  religious  belief  of  the  Algonquins  —  and  the 
remark  holds  good,  not  of  the  Algonquins  only,  but 
of  all  the  hunting  tribes  of  America  —  is  a  cloudy 
bewilderment,  where  we  seek  in  yain  for  system  or 
coherency.  Among  a  primitive  and  savage  people, 
there  were  no  poets  to  vivify  its  images,  no  j)riests  to 


1  For  Algonquin  ic^^ends,  see 
Schoolcraft,  in  Algie  Researches 
and  Oneota.  Le  Jeune  early  dis- 
covered these  l(!gends  among  the 
tribes  of  his  mission.  Two  centuries 
ago,  among  the  Algonquins  of  Lower 
Canada,  a  tale  was  related  to  him, 
which,  in  its  principal  incidents,  is 
identical  with  Uie  story  of  the  "  Boy 
who  set  a  Snare  for  the  Sun,"  recent- 
ly found  by  Mr.  Schoolcraft  among 
the  tribes  of  the  Upper  Lakes.  Com- 
pare Relation,  1637,  p.  172,  and  One- 
ota, p.  75.  The  coincidence  affords 
a  curious  proof  of  the  antiquity  and 
wide  diffusion  of  some  of  these  talea 


The  Dahcotah,  as  well  as  the  Al- 
gonquins, believe  that  the  thunder 
IS  produced  by  a  bird.  A  beauti- 
ful illustration  of  this  idea  will  be 
found  in  Mrs.  Eastman's  Legends  of 
the  Sioux.  An  Indian  propounded 
to  Le  Jeune  a  doctrine  of  his  own 
According  to  his  theory,  the  thunder 
is  produced  by  the  eructations  of  a 
monstrous  giant,  who  had  unfortu- 
nately swallowed  a  quantity  of  snakes ; 
and  the  latter  falling  to  the  earth, 
caused  the  appearance  of  lightning. 
"Voila  une  philosophie  bien  nou- 
velle ! "  exclanns  the  astonished  Jes- 
uit 


vague  an 
His  perce 
and  shad( 
ward  and 
prevalence 
Of  the 
foolishly, 
of  poets,  • 
gance  of 
counterfei 
seek  in  v. 
the  habit 
semblance 
tragedy  ai 
living  pre 
shadows  ( 
tie  of  his 
dian  wan 


1  Le  Jeun 
Jarvis,  Charh 


Chap.  I.] 


THE  INDIAN  CHABACTER. 


give  distinctness  and  harmony  to  its  lifces  and  symbols. 
To  the  Indian  mind,  all  nature  was  instinct  i,ith 
deity.  A  spirit  was  embodied  in  every  mountain,  lake, 
and  cataract;  every  bird,  beast,  or  reptile,  every  tree, 
shrub,  or  grass-blade,  was  endued  with  mystic  influ- 
ence; yet  this  untutored  pantheism  did  not  exclude 
the  conception  of  certain  divinities,  of  incongruous  and 
ever-shifting  attributes.  The  sun,  too,  was  a  god,  and 
the  moon  was  a  goddess.  Conflicting  powers  of  good 
and  evil  divided  the  universe ;  but  ify  before  the  arrival 
of  Europeans,  the  Indian  recognized  the  existence  of 
a  one,  almighty,  self-existent  Being,  the  Great  Sphit, 
the  Lord  of  Heaven  and  Earth,  the  belief  was  so 
vague  and  dubious  as  scarcely  to  deserve  the  name. 
His  perceptions  of  moral  good  and  evil  were  perplexed 
and  shadowy ;  and  the  belief  in  a  state  of  future  re- 
ward and  punishment  was  by  no  means  of  universal 
prevalence.^ 

Of  the  Indian  character,  much  has  been  written 
foolishly,  and  credulously  believed.  By  the  rhapsodies 
of  poets,  the  cant  of  sentimentalists,  and  the  extrava- 
gance of  some  who  should  have  kno^vn  better,  a 
counterfeit  image  has  been  tricked  out,  which  might 
seek  in  vain  for  its  likeness  through  every  comer  of 
the  habitable  earth ;  an  image  bearing  no  more  re- 
semblance to  its  original  than  the  monarch  of  the 
tragedy  and  the  hero  of  the  epic  poem  bear  to  their 
living  prototypes  in  the  palace  and  the  camp.  The 
shadows  of  his  wilderness  ho'Tir,  and  the  darker  man- 
tle of  his  own  inscrutable  re><er^e,  have  made  the  In- 
dian warrior   a  wondor   and  a  mvstery.     Yet  to   the 


if''-:    .\  •>* 


f 


l!i^ 


1  Le  Jeune,  Schoolcraft,  James,    Mercier,  Vit  lont,  Lallemant,  Lafitau, 
Jarvis,  Charlevoix,  Sagard,  Brebeu'',    De  Smet,  etc- 


THE  INDIAN  CHARACTER. 


[CaAr.  I. 


eye  of  rational  observation  there  is  nothing  unintel- 
ligible in  him.  He  is  full,  it  is  true,  of  contradiction. 
He  deems  himself  the  centre  of  greatness  and  renown ; 
his  pride  is  proof  against  the  fiercest  torments  of  fire 
and  steel;  and  yet  the  same  man  would  beg  for  a 
dram  of  whiskey,  or  pick  up  a  crust  of  bread  thrown 
to  him  like  a  dog,  from  the  tent  door  of  the  travel- 
ler. At  one  moment,  he  is  wary  and  cautious  to  the 
verge  of  cowr jdice ;  at  the  next,  he  abandons  himself 
to  a  very  insanity  of  recklessness,  and  the  habitual 
self-restraint  which  throws  an  impenetrable  veU  over 
emotion  is  joined  to  the  wild,  impetuous  passions  of 
a  beast  or  a  madman. 

Such  inconsistencies,  strange  as  they  seem  in  our 
eyes,  when  viewed  under  a  novel  aspect,  are  but  the 
ordinary  incidents  of  humanity.  The  qualities  of  the 
mind  are  not  uniform  in  their  action  through  all  the 
relations  of  life.  With  difterent  men,  and  different 
races  of  men,  pride,  valor,  prudence,  have  different 
forms  of  manifestation,  and  where  in  one  instance 
they  lie  doi-mant,  in  another  they  are  keenly  awake. 
The  conjunction  of  greatness  and  littleness,  meanness 
and  pride,  is  older  than  the  days  of  the  patriarchs; 
and  such  antiquated  phenomena,  displayed  under  a 
new  form  in  the  unreflecting,  undisciplined  mind  of 
a  savage,  call  for  no  special  wonder,  but  should  rather 
be  classed  with  the  other  enigmas  of  the  fathomless 
human  heart.  The  dissecting  knife  of  a  Rochefou- 
cault  might  lay  bare  matters  of  no  less  curious  obser- 
vation in  the  breast  of  every  man. 

Nature  has  stamped  the  Indian  with  a  hard  and 
stern  physiognomy.  Ambition,  revenge,  envy,  jealousy, 
are  his  ruling  passions ;  and  his  cold  temperament  is 
little  exposed  to  those  effeminate  vices  which  are  the 


mgs, 
ture, 

Theg 
dark, 
ranklii 


[Chaf.  I. 

unintel- 
radiction. 
,  renown ; 
ts  of  fire 
)eg  for  a 
id  thrown 
tie  travel- 
US  to  the 
i8  himself 
I  habitual 
veil  over 
assions  of 

'r  !.i  f'-'i  ■■ 
;m  in  our 
re  but  the 
ties  of  the 
gh  all  the 
d  different 
e  different 
le  instance 
nly  awake. 
I,  meanness 
patriarchs ; 
d  under  a 
id  mind  of 
ould  rather 
fathomless 

Rochefou- 
rious  obser- 

I  hard  and 
^y,  jealousy, 
perament  is 
ich  are  the 


Chap.  I] 


THE  INDIAN  CHARACTER. 


bane  of  milder  races.  With  him  revenge  is  an  overpow- 
ering instinct ;  nay,  more,  it  is  a  point  of  honor  and 
a  duty.  His  pride  sets  all  language  at  defiance.  He 
loathes  the  thought  of  coercion;  and  few  of  his  race 
have  ever  stooped  to  discharge  a  menial  ofiice.  A  wild 
love  of  liberty,  an  utter  intolerance  of  control,  lie  at 
the  basis  of  his  character,  and  fire  his  whole  ex- 
istence.  Yet,  in  spite  of  this  haughty  independence, 
he  is  a  devout  hero-worshipper;  and  high  achieve- 
ment in  war  or  policy  touches  a  chord  to  which 
his  nature  never  fails  to  respond.  He  looks  up  with 
admiring  reverence  to  the  sages  and  heroes  of  his 
tribe;  and  it  is  this  principle,  joined  to  the  respect 
for  age,  which  springs  from  the  patriarchal  element 
in  his  social  system,  which,  beyond  all  others,  con- 
tributes union  and  harmony  to  the  erratic  members 
of  an  Indian  community.  With  him  the  love  of  glory 
kindles  into  a  burning  passion ;  and  to  allay  its  crav- 
ings, he  will  dare  cold  and  famine,  fire,  tempest,  tor- 
ture, and  death  itself. 

These  generous  traits  are  overcast  by  much  that  is 
dark,  cold,  and  sinister,  by  sleepless  distrust,  and 
rankling  jealousy.  Treacherous  himself,  he  is  always 
suspicious  of  treachery  in  others.  Brave  as  he  is, — 
and  few  of  mankind  are  braver, — he  will  vent  his  pas- 
sion by  a  secret  stab  rather  than  an  open  blow.  His 
warfare  is  full  of  ambuscade  and  stratagem;  and  he 
never  rushes  into  battle  with  that  joyous  self-aban- 
donment, with  which  the  warriors  of  the  Gothic  races 
flung  themselves  into  the  ranks  of  tlieir  enemies.  In 
his  feasts  and  his  drinking-bouts  we  find  none  of  that 
robust  and  full-toned  mirth  which  reigned  at  the  rude 
carousals  of  our  barbaric  ancestry.     He  is  never  jovial 


>•■    -^■" 


/ 


u  ■>     ( 


»1f 


'4 


i      ;i  i 

!     '13 

■Jt 

■> 
i 


31 


38 


THE  INDIAN  CHAUACTER. 


[Chap.  I. 


in  his  cups,  and  maudlin  sorrow  or  maniacal  rage  is 
the  sole  result  of  his  potations. 

Over  all  emotion  he  throws  the  veil  of  an  iron  self- 
control,  originating  in  a  peculiar  form  of  pride,  and 
fostered  by  rigorous  discipline  from  childhood  up- 
ward. He  is  trained  to  conceal  passion,  and  not  to 
subdue  it.  The  inscrutable  warrior  is  aptly  imaged 
by  the  hackneyed  figure  of  a  volcano  covered  with 
snow ;  and  no  man  can  say  when  or  where  the  wild- 
fire will  burst  forth.  This  shallow  self-mastery  serves 
to  give  dignity  to  public  deliberation,  and  harmony  to 
social  life.  Wrangling  and  quarrel  are  strangers  to 
an  Indian  dwelling ;  and  while  an  assembly  of  the 
ancient  Gauls  was  garrulous  as  a  convocation  of  mag- 
pies, a  Roman  senate  might  have  taken  a  lesson  from 
the  grave  solemnity  of  an  Indian  council.  In  the 
midst  of  his  family  and  friends,  he  hides  affections, 
by  nature  none  of  the  most  tender,  under  a  mask  of 
icy  coldness ;  and  in  the  torturing  fires  of  his  enemy, 
the  haughty  sufferer  maintains  to  the  last  his  look 
of  grim  defiance. 

His  intellect  is  as  peculiar  as  his  moral  organiza- 
tion. Among  all  savages,  the  powers  of  perception 
preponderate  over  those  of  reason  and  analysis;  but 
this  is  more  especially  the  case  with  the  Indian.  An 
acute  judge  of  character,  at  least  of  such  parts  of  it 
as  his  experience  enables  him  to  comprehend;  keen 
to  a  proverb  in  all  exercises  of  war  and  the  chase, 
he  seldom  traces  efiects  to  their  causes,  or  follows  out 
actions  to  their  remote  results.  Though  a  close  ob- 
server of  external  nature,  he  no  sooner  attempts  to 
account  for  her  phenomena  than  he  involves  himself 
in  the  most  ridiculous  absurdities;  and  quite  content 


CnAP.  I.] 


THE  INDIAN  CUARACTER. 


39 


with  these  puerilities,  he  has  not  the  least  desire  to 
push  his  inquiries  further.  His  curiosity,  abundantly 
active  within  its  own  narrow  circle,  is  dead  to  all 
things  else ;  and  to  attempt  rousing  it  from  its  torpor 
is  but  a  bootless  task.  He  seldom  takes  cognizance 
of  general  or  abstract  ideas;  and  his  language  has 
scarcely  the  power  to  express  them,  except  through 
the  medium  of  figures  drawn  firom  the  external  world, 
and  often  highly  picturesque  and  forcible.  The  ab- 
sence of  reflection  makes  him  grossly  improvident, 
and  unfits  him  for  pursuing  any  complicated  scheme 
of  war  or  policy. 

Some  races  of  men  seem  moulded  in  wax,  soft  and 
melting,  at  once  plastic  and  feeble.  Some  races,  like 
some  metals,  combine  the  greatest  flexibility  with  the 
greatest  strength.  But  the  Indian  is  hewn  out  of  a 
rock.  You  cannot  change  the  form  without  destruc- 
tion of  the  substance.  Such,  at  least,  has  too  often 
proved  the  case.  Races  of  inferior  energy  have  pos- 
sessed a  power  of  expansion  and  assimilation  to  which 
he  is  a  stranger;  and  it  is  this  fixed  and  rigid  qual- 
ity which  has  proved  his  ruin.  He  >vill  not  learn 
the  arts  of  civilization,  and  he  and  his  forest  must 
perish  together.  The  stem,  unchanging  fr;atures  of 
his  mind  excite  our  admiration,  from  theiv  very  im- 
mutability; and  we  look  with  deep  interest  on  the 
fate  of  this  irreclaimable  son  of  the  wilderness,  the 
child  who  will  not  be  weaned  from  the  breast  of  his 
rugged  mother.  And  our  interest  increases  when  we 
discern  in  the  unhappy  wanderer,  mingled  among  his 
vices,  the  germs  of  heroic  virtues  —  a  hand  bountiful 
to  bestow,  as  it  is  rapacious  to  seize,  and,  even  in  ex- 
tremest  famine,  imparting  its  last  morsel  to  a  fellow- 


mm 


40 


THE  INDIAN  CHARACTER. 


[Chap.  I. 


sufferer;  a  heart  which,  strong  in  friemlHhip  as  in 
hate,  thinks  it  not  too  much  to  lay  down  life  for  its 
chosen  comrade ;  a  soul  true  to  its  own  idea  of  honor, 
and  burning  with  an  unquenchable  thirst  for  great- 
ness and  renown. 

The  imprisoned  lion  in  the  showman's  cage  differs 
not  more  widely  from  the  lord  of  the  desert,  than  the 
beggarly  frequenter  of  frontier  garrisons  and  dram- 
shops differs  from  the  proud  denizen  of  the  woods. 
It  is  in  his  native  wilds  al>  c  that  the  Indian  must 
be  seen  and  studied.  Thus  to  depict  him  is  the  aim 
of  the  ensuing  History;  and  if,  from  the  shades  of 
rock  and  forest,  the  savage  features  should  look  too 
grimly  forth,  it  is  because  the  clouds  of  a  tempestu- 
ous war  have  cast  upon  the  picture  their  murky 
shadows  and  lurid  fires. 


'I 


w 
;li! 


'■it    ';•,::'■;/.,    ,  /^  : 

'1^    .■"'''■,■'1     ;'■.■.'     '»■  I  > 


.*■       •■ 


..  ■, 


..* 


m 


CHAPTER    II. 


'-:» 


PRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMERICA. 


',  j'»:; 


The  American  colonies  of  France  and  England- 
grew  up  to  maturity  under  widely  different  auspices. 
Canada,  the  offspring  of  Church  and  State,  nursed 
from  infancy  in  the  lap  of  power,  its  puny  strength 
fed  with  artificial  stimulants,  its  movements  guicled 
by  rule  and  discipline,  its  limbs  trained  to  martial 
exercise,  languished,  in  spite  of  all,  from  the  lack  of 
vital  sap  and  energj'.  The  colonies  of  England,  o .:  > 
cast  and  neglected,  but  strong  in  native  vigor  and 
self-confiding  courage,  grew  yet  more  strong  with  con- 
flict and  with  striving,  and  developed  the  rugged  pro- 
portions and  unwieldy  strength  of  a  youthful  giant. 

In  the  valley  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  along  the 
coasts  of  the  Atlantic,  adverse  principles  contended 
for  the  mastery.  Feudalism  stood  arrayed  against  De- 
mocracy; Popery  against  Protestantism;  the  sword 
against  the  ploughshare.  The  priest,  the  soldier,  and 
the  noble,  ruled  in  Canada.  The  'gsorant,  light- 
hearted  Canadian  peasant  knew  nothing  and  cared 
nothing  about  popular  rights  and  c^vil  liberties.  Born 
to  obey,  he  lived  in  contented  submission,  without  the 
wish  or  the  capacity  for  self-rule.  Power,  centred 
in  the  heart  of  the  system,  left  the  masses  inert. 
The  settlements  along  the  margin  of  the  St.  Lawrence 
were  like  a  far-extended  camp,  where  an  army  lay  at 

6  D* 


42 


FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMERICA.        [Chap.  H. 


rest,  ready  for  the  march  or  the  battle,  and  where 
war  and  adventure,  not  trade  and  tillage,  seemed  the 
chief  aims  of  life.  The  lords  of  the  soil  were  noble- 
men, for  the  most  part  soldiers,  or  the  sons  of  sol- 
diers, proud  and  ostentatious,  thriftless  and  poor; 
and  the  people  were  their  vassals.  Over  every  clus- 
ter of  small  white  houses  glittered  the  sacred  emblem 
of  the  cross.  The  church,  the  convent,  and  the  road- 
side shrine  were  seen  at  every  turn ;  and  in  the  towns 
and  villages,  one  met  each  moment  the  black  robe  of 
the  Jesuit,  the  gray  garb  of  the  RecoUet,  and  the 
formal  habit  of  the  Ursuline  nun.  The  names  of 
saints,  St.  Joseph,  St.  Ignatius,  St.  Francis,  were  per- 
petuated in  the  capes,  rivers,  and  islands,  the  forts 
and  villages  of  the  land,  and,  with  every  day,  crowds 
of  simple  worshippers  knelt  in  adoration  before  the 
countless  altars  of  the  Roman  faith. 

If  we  search  the  world  for  the  sharpest  contrast  to 
the  spiritual  and  temporal  vassalage  of  Canada,  we 
shall  find  it  among  her  immediate  neighbors,  the  stem 
Puritang  of  New  England,  where  the  spirit  of  non- 
conformity was  sublimed  to  a  fiery  essence,  and  where 
the  love  of  liberty  and  the  hatred  of  power  burned 
with  sevenfold  heat.  The  English  colonist,  witli 
thoughtful  brow  and  limbs  hardened  with  toil;  call- 
ing no  man  master,  yet  bowing  reverently  to  the  law 
which  he  himself  had  made;  patient  and  laborious, 
and  seeking  for  the  solid  comforts  rather  than  the 
ornaments  of  life ;  no  lover  of  war,  yet,  if  need  were, 
fighting  with  a  stubborn,  indomitable  courage,  and 
then  bending  once  more  with  steadfast  energy  to  his 
farm,  or  his  merchandise,  —  such  a  man  might  well  be 
deemed  the  very  pith  and  marrow  of  a  commonwealth. 

In   every    quality   of   efficiency  and   strength,   the 


chaf.  n. 


Chap.  H] 


THE  FEENCH  CANADIANS. 


43 


where 
led  the 
noble- 
of  sol- 
poor ; 
•y  clus- 
emblem 
le  road- 
3  towns 
robe  of 
md  the 
mes   of 
ere  per- 
le   forts 
crowds 
fore  the 

itrast  to 
lada,  we 
he  stem 
of  non- 
id  when 
burned 
}t,  witl: 
il ;  call- 
the  law 
iborious, 
han  the 
led  were, 
ige,  and 
;y  to  his 
b  well  be 
nwealth. 
gth,   the 


Canadian  fell  miserably  below  his  rival;  but  in  all 
that  pleases  the  eye  and  interests  the  imagination,  he 
far  surpassed  him.  Buoyant  and  gay,  like  his  ances- 
try of  France,  he  made  the  frozen  wilderness  ring 
with  merriment,  ansv/ered  the  surly  howling  of  the 
pine  forest  with  peals  of  laughter,  and  warmed  with 
revelry  the  groaning  ice  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  Care- 
less and  thoughtless,  he  lived  happy  in  the  midst  of 
poverty,  content  if  he  coxild  but  gain  the  means  to 
fill  his  tobacco  pouch,  and  decorate  the  cap  of  his 
mistress  with  a  painted  ribbon.  The  example  of  a  beg- 
gared nobility,  who,  proud  and  penniless,  could  only 
assert  theu*  rank  by  idleness  and  ostentation,  was  not 
lost  upon  him.  A  rightful  heir  to  French  bravery 
and  French  restlessness,  he  had  an  eager  love  of  wan- 
dering and  adventure;  and  this  propensity  found  am- 
ple scope  in  the  service  of  the  fur-trade,  the  engrossing- 
occupation  and  chief  source  of  income  to  the  colony. 
When  the  priest  of  St.  Ann's  had  shrived  him  of  his 
sins;  when,  after  the  parting  carousal,  he  embarked 
with  his  comrades  in  the  deep-laden  canoe;  when 
their  oars  kept  time  to  the  measured  cadence  of  their 
song,  and  the  blue,  sunny  bosom  of  the  Ottawa  opened 
before  them;  when  their  frail  bark  quivered  among 
the  milky  foam  and  black  rocks  of  the  rapid;  and 
when,  aroimd  their  camp-lire,  they  wasted  half  the 
night  with  jests  and  laughter, — then  the  Canadian  was 
in  his  element.  His  footsteps  explored  the  farthest 
hiding-places  of  the  wilderness.  In  the  evening  dance, 
his  red  cap  mingled  with  the  scalp-locks  and  feathers 
of  the  Indian  braves ;  or,  stretched  on  a  bear-skin  by 
the  side  of  his  dusky  mistress,  he  watched  the  gam- 
bols of  his  hybrid  offspring,  in  happy  obHvion  of  the 
partner  Avhom  he  left  unnumbered  leagues  behind. 


i  m 


44 


FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  ASIERICA.         [CH.iP.  II. 


The  fur  trade  engendered  a  peculiar  class  of  rest- 
less bush-rangers,  more  akin  to  Indians  than  to  white 
men.  Those  who  had  once  felt  the  fascinations  of 
the  forest  were  unfitted  ever  after  for  a  life  of  quiet 
labor;  and  \vith  this  spirit  the  whole  colony  was  in- 
fected. From  this  cause,  no  less  than  from  occasional 
wars  with  the  English,  and  repeated  attacks  of  the 
Iroquois,  the  agriculture  of  the  country  was  sunk  to 
a  low  ebb;  while  feudal  exactions,  a  ruinous  system 
of  monopoly,  and  the  intermeddlings  of  arbitrary  power, 
cramped  every  branch  of  industry.^  Yet,  by  the  zeal 
of  priests  and  the  daring  enterprise  of  soldiers  and 
explorers,  Canada,  though  sapless  and  infirm,  spread 
forts  and  missions  through  all  the  western  wilder- 
ness. Feebly  rooted  in  the  soil,  she  thrust  out  branches 
which  overshadowed  half  America;  a  magnificent  ob- 
ject to  the  eye,  but  one  which  the  fir&t  whirlwind 
would  prostrate  in  the  dust. 

Such  excursive  enterprise  was  alien  to  the  genius 
of  the  British  colonies.  Daring  activity  was  rife  among 
them,  but  it  did  not  aim  si  the  founding  of  military 
outposts  and  forest  missions.  By  the  force  of  ener- 
getic industry,  their  population  swelled  with  an  un- 
heard-of rapidity,  their  wealth  increased  in  a  yet  greater 
ratio,  and  their  promise  of  future  greatness  opened 
with  every  advancing  year.  But  it  was  a  greatness 
rather  of  peace  than  of  war.  The  free  institutions, 
the  independence  of  authority,  which  were  the  source 
o^  th.ir  increase,  were  adverse  to  that  unity  of  coun- 
sel and  promptitude  of  action  which  are  the  soul  of 


1  Raynal,  Hist.  Indies,  VII.  87,  eighteenth  century.    For  the  feudal 

(Lond.  1783.)  tenure  as  existing  in  Canada,  see 

Charlevoix,  Voyages,  Letter  X.  Bouchette,  I.    Chap.  XIV.,   (Lond. 

The  Swedish  traveller  Kalm  gives  1831,)  and  Garneau,  Hist.  Canada, 

an  interesting  account  of  manners  in  Book  III.  Chap.  III. 
Canada,  about   the    middle  of  the 


ClIAF.  II.] 


RELIGIOUS  ZEAL  OF  CANADA. 


45 


war.  It  was  far  otherwise  with  their  military  rival. 
France  had  her  Canadian  forces  well  in  hand.  They 
had  but  one  will,  and  that  was  the  will  of  a  mistress. 
Now  here,  now  there,  in  sharp  and  rapid  onset,  they 
could  assail  the  cumbrous  masses  and  unwieldy  strength 
of  their  antagonists,  as  the  king-bird  attacks  the  eagle, 
or  the  swordfish  the  whale.  Between  two  such  com- 
batants the  strife  must  needs  be  a  long  one. 

Canada  was  a  true  child  of  the  Church,  baptized  in 
infancy  and  faithful  to  the  last.  Champlain,  the  found- 
er of  Quebec,  a  man  of  noble  spirit,  a  statesman  and 
a  soldier,  was  deeply  imbued  with  fervid  piety.  "  The 
saving  of  a  soul,"  he  woidd  often  say,  "  is  worth  more 
than  the  conquest  of  an  empu'e ; "  ^  and  to  forward  the 
work  of  conversion,  he  brought  with  him  four  Fran- 
ciscan monks  from  France.  At  a  later  period,  the 
task  of  colonization  would  have  been  abandoned,  but 
for  the  hope  of  casting  the  pure  light  of  the  faith 
over  the  gloomy  wastes  of  heathendom.^  iVll  France 
was  filled  with  the  zeal  of  proselytism.  Men  and 
women  of  exalted  rank  lent  their  countenance  to  the 
lioly  work.  From  many  an  altar  daily  petitions  were 
offered  for  the  well-being  of  the  mission;  and  in  the 
Holy  House  of  Mont  Martre,  a  nun  lay  prostrate  day 
and  night  before  the  shrine,  praying  for  the  conversion 
of  Canada.^  In  one  convent,  thirty  nuns  offered  them- 
selves for  the  labors  of  the  wilderness;  and  priests 
flocked  in  crowds  to  the  colony.^  The  powers  of 
darkness  took  alarm ;  and  when  a  ship,  freighted  with 
tlie  apostles  of  the   faith,  was   fearfully   tempest-tost 


i 


1' 


1  Charlevoix,  Nouv.  France,  1. 197. 
'^  Charlevoix,  I.  198. 
^  A.  D.  1635.    RelaUon  des  Hu- 
rons,  1636,  p.  2. 

4  "Vivffi  ,»n  In   Nniiuellp    Francp 


c'est  a  vray  dire  vivre  dans  le  sein 
de  Dieu."  Such  are  the  extravagant 
words  of  Le  Jeune,  in  his  report  of 
the  year  1635. 


.*     AMOW 


46 


FBANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AIHERICA.       [Chap.  U. 


il 


■K 
.1 


upon  her  voyage,  the  storm  was  ascribed  to  the  malice 
of  demons,  trembling  for  the  safety  of  their  ancient 
empire.  '^ 

The  general  enthusiasm  was  not  without  its  fruits. 
The  Church  could  pay  back  with  usury  all  that  she 
received  of  aid  and  encouragement  from  the  temporal 
power;  and  the  ambition  of  Louis  XIII.  could  not 
have  devised  a  more  efficient  enginery  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  its  schemes,  than  that  supplied  by  the 
zeal  of  the  devoted  propagandists.  The  priest  and  the 
soldier  went  hard  in  hand;  and  the  cross  and  the 
jkur  de  lis  were  planted  side  by  side. 

Foremost  among  the  envoys  of  the  faith  were  the 
members  of  that  singular  order,  who,  in  another  hem- 
isphere, had  already  done  so  much  to  turn  back  thei 
advancing  tide  of  religious  freedom,  and  strengthen 
the  arm  of  Rome.  To  the  Jesuits  was  assigned,  for 
many  years,  the  entire  charge  of  the  Canadian  mis- 
sions, to  the  exclusion  of  the  Franciscans,  early  labor- 
ers in  the  same  barren  field.  Inspired  with  a  self- 
devoting  zeal  to  snatch  souls  from  perdition,  and  win 
new  empires  to  the  cross;  casting  from  them  every 
hope  of  earthly  pleasure  or  earthly  aggrandizement, 
the  Jesuit  fathers  buried  themselves  in  deserts,  facing 
death  with  the  courage  of  heroes,  and  enduring  tor- 
ments with  the  constancy  of  martyrs.  Their  story  is 
replete  with  marvels  —  miracles  of  patient  suffering 
and  daring  enterprise.  They  were  the  pioneers  of 
Northern  America.^  We  see  them  among  the  frozen 
forests  of  Acadia,  struggling  on  snow-shoes,  with  some 
wandering   Algonquin    horde,    or   crouching    in    the 


/  ; 


1  See  Jesuit  Relations  and  Lettres    Chap.  II. ;  and  Bancroft,  Hist.  U.  S. 

EuiuaiitcB ;  alsc,  Charlevoix,  psssim ;    Chep,  XX,  ^ 

Gameau,   Hist  Canada,  Book  IV.  •  /  " 


'\n 


Chap.  H-J 


JESUIT  MISSIONARIES. 


47 


crowded  hunting-lodge,  half  jtifled  in  the  smoky  den, 
and  battlmg  with  troops  of  famished  dogs  for  the 
last  morsel  of  sustenance.  Again  we  see  the  black- 
robed  priest  wading  among  the  white  rapids  of  the 
Ottawa,  toiling  with  his  savage  comrades  to  drag 
the  canoe  against  the  headlong  water.  Again,  radiant 
in  the  "vestments  of  his  priestly  oflice,  he  administers 
the  sacramental  bread  to  kneeling  crowds  of  -  plumed 
and  painted  proselytes  in  the  black  forests  of  the 
Hurons;  or,  bearing  his  life  in  his  hand,  he  carries 
his  sacred  mission  into  the  strong-holds  of  the  Iro- 
quois, like  a  man  who  invades  unarmed  a  den  of 
angry  tigers.  Jesuit  explorers  traced  the  St.  Law- 
rence to  its  source,  and  said  masses  among  the  soli- 
tudes of  Lake  Superior,  where  the  boldest  fur-trader 
scarcely  dared  to  follow.  They  planted  missions  at 
St.  Mary's  and  at  Michillimackinac ;  ^  and  one  of  their 
fraternity,  the  illustrious  Marquette,  discovered  the 
Mississippi,  and  opened  a  new  theatre  to  the  bound- 
less ambition  of  France.** 

The  path  of  the  missionary  was  a  thorny  and  a 
bloody  one ;  and  a  life  of  weary  apostleship  was  often 
crowned  with  a  frightful  martyrdom.  Jean  de  Bre- 
beuf  and  Gabriel  Lallemant  preached  the  faith  among 
the  villages  of  the  Hurons,  when  their  terror-stricken 
flock  were  overwhelmed  by  an  irruption  of  the  Iro- 
quois.^ The  missionaries  might  have  fled ;  but,  true  to 
their  sacred  function,  they  remained  behind  to  aid  the 
wounded  and  baptize  the  dying.  Both  were  made  cap- 
tive, and  both  were  doomed  to  the  fiery  torture.  Bre- 
beuf,  a  veteran  soldier  of  the  cross,  met  his  fate  with 
an  undaunted  composure,  which  amazed  his  murderers. 


-  A.  D.  1668-1671. 


9  A.  D.  1673, 


3  A.  D.  1649. 


/: 


\ 


<@ 


•  I « 


48 


TRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMERICA.       [Chap,  n. 


US 


With  iinfliiiching  constancy  he  endured  torments 
too  horrible  to  be  recorded,  and  died  calmly  as  a 
martyr  of  the  early  church,  or  a  v ^^L  cliie.f  of  the 
Mohawks. 

The  sleuder  frame  of  Lallemant.  a  :un  young  \j\ 
year,'  and  gentle  in  spirit,  ^''as  enveloped  m  Ma/. in  14 
savin-bark.  Again  and  again  the  fire  wds  ext/a- 
guished;  ag,i*it.  and  agiiu  it  >vas  kir^iled  afresh;  and 
with  such  fiondish  hig'iuiity  were  his  torments  pro- 
tracted, thot  he  lijigered  lO?  seventeen  hxyxra  ^efor.. 
death  rame  to  his  relief.' 

Jsaai"  Jogues,  taken  captie  l>y  the  Irooiois,  was 
led  from  canton  to  canton,  and  tillage  to  village,  en- 
rl.in  'g  fresh  torments  and  indignities  at  every  stage 
r.i  bis  pro,q;reas.^  Men,  women,  and  children  vied  with 
each  otlior  in  ingenious  malignity.  Redeemed,  at 
length,  by  th'i  humane  exertions  of  a  Dutch  officer, 
he  repaired  t)  France,  where  his  disfigured  person 
and  mutilated  hands  told  the  story  of  his  sufferings. 
But  the  promptings  of  a  sleepless  conscience  urged 
him  to  return  and  complete  the  work  he  had  begun; 
to  illumino  the  moral  darkness  UT)on  which,  during 
the  months  of  his  disastrous  captivity,  he  fondly 
hoped  that  he  had  thrown  some  rays  of  light.  Once 
more  he  bent  his  footsteps  towards  the  scene  of  his 
living  martyrdom,  saddened  with  a  deep  presentiment 
that  he  was  advancing  to  his  death.  Nor  were  his 
forebodings  untrue.  In  a  villag*}  of  the  Mohaw!'..3,  the 
blow  of  a  tomahawk  closed  his  mission  and  his  life.^ 

Such  intrepid  self-devotion  may  well  call  forth  our 
highest  admiration ;  but  when  we  seek  for  the  results 
of  these  toils  and   sacrifices,   W'    shall   seek  in  vain 


arievuix,  i.  ^va. 


a    *    T\   tcAn 


CUAP.  II.] 

Patience 
minds  ax 
uits,  it  ii 
but  the  I 
versions 
observes,: 
would  b 
brandy  c 
flattering 
thev  sho 

• 

and  med 
fancy  of 
salvation* 
heart  as 
place  a  i 
enemies, 
a  few  i] 
Lower  C 
can  be  f 
upon  a 

WhUe 
the  labo: 
to  the  n 
of  Frenc 
inac,  St. 
the  web  I: 
cursor 
less,  the 
the  welf 
sight,  wi 
by  ppril 
r":;vxjne 


1  For  re 

Hiafnrirnl  T 


c 


cuAP.  n.] 


JESUIT  MISSIONARIES. 


49 


Patience  and  zeal  were  thrown  away  r^^a  lethargic 
minds  and  stubborn  hearts.  The  rer^^ics  of  the  Jes- 
uits, it  is  true,  display  a  copious  Vst  of  conversions ; 
but  the  zealous  fathers  reckoned  ike  number  of  con- 
versions by  the  nimiber  of  baptisms ;  and,  as  Le  Clercq 
observes,  with  no  less  truth  than  candor,  an  Indian 
would  be  baptized  ten  times  a  day  for  a  pint  of 
brandy  or  a  pound  of  tobacco.  Neither  can  more 
flattering  conclusions  be  drawn  from  the  alacrity  which 
they  showed  to  adorn  their  persons  with  crucifixes 
and  medals.  The  ghtter  of  the  trinkets  pleased  the 
fancy  of  the  warrior;  and,  with  the  emblem  of  man's 
salvation  pendent  from  his  neck,  he  was  often  at 
heart  as  thorough  a  heathen  as  when  he  wore  in  its 
place  a  necklace  made  of  the  dried  forefingers  of  his 
enemies.  At  the  present  day,  with  the  exception  of 
a  few  insignificant  bands  of  converted  Indians  in 
Lower  Canada,  not  a  vestige  of  early  Jesuit  influence 
can  be  found  among  the  tribes.  The  seed  was  sown 
upon  a  rock.^ 

While  the  church  was  reaping  but  a  scanty  harvest, 
the  labors  of  the  missionaries  were  fruitful  of  profit 
to  the  monarch  of  France.  The  Jesuit  led  the  van 
of  French  colonization ;  and  at  Detroit,  Michillimack- 
inac,  St.  Mary's,  Green  Bay,  and  other  outposts  of 
the  west,  tlie  establishment  of  a  mission  was  the  pre- 
cursor of  military  occupancy.  In  other  respects  no 
less,  the  labors  of  the  wandering  missionaries  advanced 
the  welfare  of  the  colony.  Sagacious  and  keen  of 
sight,  with  faculties  stimulated  by  zeal  and  sharpened 
by  ppril.  the)  j)  ade  faithful  report  of  the  temper  and 
jy  vrcnienls   -^tf  the   distant   tribes  among  whom  they 

1  For  rer.  arks  on  the  futility  of  lesuit  missionary  efforts,  see  IrJalkett, 
Historica!  Notes  Gha":  IV. 

7      '  E 


Si 

<! 

mi 

'4 


u'w  vv.  '■''' ■'*-' fK* 


50 


FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMERICA.        [Cuap.  II. 


were  distributed.  The  influence  which  they  often 
gained  was  exerted  in  behalf  of  the  government  un- 
der whose  auspices  their  missions  were  carried  on; 
anc*  they  strenuously  labored  to  win  over  the  tribes 
to  the  French  alliance,  and  alienate  them  from  the 
heretic  English.  In  all  things  they  approved  them- 
selves the  stanch  and  steadfast  auxiliaries  of  the 
imperial  power ;  and  the  Marquis  du  Quesne  observed 
of  the  missionary  Picquet,  that  in  his  single  person 
he  was  worth  ten  regiments.^ 

Among  the  English  colonies,  the  pioneers  of  civili- 
zation were  for  the  most  part  rude,  yet  vigorous  men, 
impelled  to  entei-prise  by  native  restlessness,  or  lured 
by  the  hope  of  gain.  Their  range  was  limited,  and 
seldom  extended  far  beyond  the  outskirts  of  the  set- 
tlements. With  Canada  it  was  far  othenvise.  There 
was  no  energy  in  the  bulk  of  her  people.  The  court 
and  the  army  supplied  the  main  springs  of  her  vital  ac- 
tion, and  the  hands  which  planted  the  lilies  of  France 
in  the  heart  of  the  wilderness  had  never  guidt-^  the 
ploughshare  or  wielded  the  spade.  The  love  of  ad  ;^en- 
ture,  the  ambition  of  new  discovery,  the  hope  of  mili- 
tary advancement,  urged  men  of  place  and  culture  to 
embark  on  bold  and  comprehensive  enterprise.  Many 
a  gallant  gentleman,  many  a  nobleman  of  France, 
trod  the  black  mould  and  oozy  mosses  of  the  forest 
with  feet  that  had  pressed  the  carpets  of  Versailles. 
They  whose  youth  had  passec*  in  camps  and  courts 
grew  gray  among  the  wigwar^s  of  savages;  and  the 
lives  of  Castine,  Joncaire,  and  Priber^  are  invested 
with  all  the  interest  of  romance.  '  '^    "   ' 


1  Picquet  was  a  priest  of  St.  Sul-  Adair,  240.  I  have  seen  mention  of 
pice.  For  a  siietch  of  his  life,  see  this  man  in  contemporary  provincial 
Lett.  Edif.  XIV=  newspapers,  where  he  is  sometimes 

2  For  an  account  of  Priber,  see  spoken  of  as  a  disgu!sed  Jesuit.    He 


Chap.  II] 


LA  SALLE. 


51 


Conspicuous  in  the  annals  of  Canada  stands  the 
memorable  name  of  Kobert  Cavalier  de  La  Salle,  the 
man  who,  beyond  all  his  compeers,  contributed  to 
expand  the  boundary  of  French  empire  in  the  west. 
La  Salle  commanded  at  Fort  Frontenac,  erected  near 
the  outlet  of  Lake  Ontario,  on  its  northern  shore, 
and  then  forming  the  most  advanced  military  outpost 
of  the  colony.  Here  he  dwelt  among  Indians,  and 
half-breeds,  traders,  voyageurs,  bush-rangers,  and  Fran- 
ciscan monks.  He  ruled  his  little  empire  with  ab- 
solute sway,  enforcing  resT)ect  by  his  energy,  but 
offending  many  by  his  rigor.  Here  he  brooded  upon 
the  grand  design  which  had  long  engaged  his  thoughts. 
He  had  resolved  to  complete  the  achievement  of 
Father  Marquette,  to  trace  the  unknown  Mississippi 
to  its  mouth,  to  plant  the  standard  of  his  king  in 
the  newly-discovered  regions,  and  found  colonies  which 
should  make  good  the  sovereignty  of  France  from  the 
Frozen  Ocean  to  Mexico.  Ten  years  of  his  early  life 
had  passed  in  connection  with  the  Jesuits,  and  lis 
strong  mind  had  hardened  to  iron  under  the  disci- 
pline of  that  relentless  school.  To  a  sound  judg- 
ment, and  a  penetrating  sagacity,  he  joined  a  boundless 
enterprise  and  an  adamantme  constancy  of  purpose. 
But  his  nature  was  stern  and  austere;  he  was  prone 
to  rule  by  fear  rather  than  by  love ;  he  took  counsel 
of  no  man,  and  chilled  all  who  approached  hira  by 
his  cold  reserve. 

At  the  close  of  the  year  1678,  his  preparations  were 
complete,  and  he  despatched  his  attendants  to  .  v. 
banks  of  the  Eiver  Niagara,  whither  he  soon  followed 
in  person.     Here  he  erected  a  little  fort  of  palisades, 

took  up  his  residence    among  the    labored  to  gain  ♦hem  over  to  the 
Cherclf  J.  ^  about  the  year  173(),  and    French  interest. 


m' 


\Jt.:t 


■Hg 


FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMERICA.         [Chap.  H. 


and  was  the  first  military  tenant  of  a  spot  destined  to 
momentous  consequence  in  future  wars.  Two  leagues 
above  the  cataract,  on  the  western  bank  of  the  river, 
he  h\vV  '];■  first  vessel  which  ever  explored  the 
Wfttf!^  or  ih  '  upper  lakes.*  Her  name  was  the  Griffin, 
and  her  burden  was  sixty  tons.  On  the  seventh  of 
August,  1679,  she  began  her  adventurous  voyage  amid 
the  speechless  wonder  of  the  Indians,  who  stood 
amazed,  alike  at  the  n^-'vonted  size  of  the  wooden 
canoe,  at  the  flasli  and  roar  oi  the  cannon  from  her 
decks,  and  at  the  carved  figure  of  a  griffin,  which, 
with  expanded  wings,  sat  crouched  upon  her  prow. 
She  bore  on  her  course  along  the  virgin  waters  of 
Lake  Erie,  through  the  beautiful  windings  of  the 
Detroit,  and  among  the  restless  billows  of  Lake  Hu- 
ron, where  a  furious  tempest  had  well  nigh  ingulfed 
her.  La  Salle  pursued  his  voyage  along  Lake  Michi- 
gan in  birch  canoes,  and,  after  protracted  suffering 
from  famine  and  exposure,  reached  it;  southern  ex- 
tremity on  the  eighteenth  of  October.^ 

He  led  his  followers  to  the  banks  of  the  river  now 
called  the  St.  Joseph.  Here,  again,  he  built  a  tort; 
and  here,  in  after  years,  the  Jesuits  placed  a  mission 
and  the  gocmment  a  garrison.  Thence  he  pushed 
on  into  the  unknowi  region  of  the  Illinois;  and  now 
dang,  vs  an  J.,  difficul  s  began  to  thicken  about  him. 
Indians  threatened  hostility;  his  men  lost  heart,  clam- 
ored, m« ',  mutinous,  and  repeatedly  deserted ;  and, 
worse  than  all,  noth  i:g  was  heard  of  the  vessel  which 
had  been  sent  back  i'  Canada  for  nec^s^ary  supplies. 
Weeks  wore  on  and  doubt  ripened  into  certainty. 
She   had   founi"'      1   <n  long  tie   stoi-ms  of  these  wil- 

1  Sparka,  Life  of  La  Salle,  21. 

2  Hennepin,  New  Discovery,  98,  (Lond.  1698.) 


Ciur.  ni 


LA  6  ^  LLE. 


■XI.  J 


53 


deniess  oceans;   and  hnr  j    .»   seemed  to  involve  the 
ruin  of  the  enterprise,  since  it  was  vain  to  proceed 
farther  without  the  expected  supplies.     In  this  disas- 
trous crisis,  La  Salle  embraced  a  resolution  eminently 
characteristic  of  his  intrepid  temper.     Leaving  his  men 
in  charge  of  a  subordinate  at  a  fort  which  he  had 
built  on  the  Eiver  Illinois,  he  turned  his  face  again 
towards  Canada.     He  traversed  on  foot  twelve  hun- 
dred miles   of   frozen    forest,   crossing   rivers,   toiling 
through   snow-drifts,  wading  ice-encumbered   swamps, 
sustaining  life  by  the  fru.ts  of  the  chase,  and  threat- 
ened day  and  night  by  lurking  enemies.     He  gained 
his  destination,  but  it  was  only  to  encounter  a  fresh 
stonn  of  calamities.     ^lis  enemies  had  been  busy  in 
his  absence;  a  malicious  report  had  gone  abroad  that 
he  was  dead;    his  creditors  had  seized  his   property; 
and   the   stores   on   which   he  most  relied  had  been 
wrecked  at  sea,  or  lost   among  the  rapids  of  the  St. 
Lawrence.     Still  he  battled  against  adversity  with  his 
wonted  vigor,  and  in  Count  Frontenac,  the  governor 
of  the  province,  —  a  spirit   kindred  to  his  own, — he 
found  a  firm  friend.     Every  difficulty  gave  way  before 
him ;  and  with  fresh  supplies  of  men,  stores,  and  am- 
11)1    ition,  he  again  embarked  for  the  Illinois.     Round- 
ing the  vast  circuit  of  the  lakes,  he  reached  the  mouth 
of  the  St.  Joseph,  and  hastened  with   anxious  speed 
to   the   fort  where   he    had   left    his   followers.      The 
place  was  empty.     Not  a  man  remained.     Terrified, 
despondent,  and  embroiled  in   Indian  wars,  tiiev  had 
fled  to  seek  peace  and  safety,  he  knew  not  vvhicher. 
Once  more   the   dauntless    discoverer    turned   back 
towards  Canada      Once  more  he  stood  before  Count 
Frontenac,  and  once  more  bent  all  his  resources  and 
all  his   credit  to  gain   means  for  the  prosecution  of 


f!? 


1  1 


54 


FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMFjUCA.        [Chap.  II. 


1 


li 


his  enterprise.  He  succeeded.  With  nis  little  flotilla 
of  canoes,  he  left  his  fort,  at  the  outlet  of  T-ake  On- 
tario, and  slowly  retraced  those  interminable  Avaters, 
and  lines  of  forest-bounded  shore,  which  had  grown 
drearily  familiar  to  his  eyes.  Fate  at  length  seemed 
tired  of  the  conflict  with  so  stubborn  an  adversary. 
All  w(  nt  prosiKjrously  with  the  voyagers.  They  passed 
the  lakes  in  safety ;  they  crossed  the  rough  portage  to 
the  waters  of  the  Illinois;  they  followed  its  winding 
channel,  and  descended  the  turbid  eddies  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, received  with  various  welcome  by  the  scattered 
tribes  who  dwelt  along  its  banks.  Now  the  waters 
grew  bitter  to  the  taste;  now  the  trampling  of  the 
surf  was  heard;  and  now  the  broad  ocean  opened 
upon  their  sight,  and  their  goal  was  won.  On  the 
ninth  of  April,  1682,  with  his  followers  under  arms, 
amid  the  firing  of  musketry,  the  chanting  of  the  Te 
Deum,  and  shouts  of  "Vive  le  roi,"  La  Salle  took 
formal  possession  of  the  vast  valley  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, in  the  name  of  Louis  the  Great,  King  of  France 
and  Navarre.* 

The  first  stage  of  his  enterprise  was  accomplished, 
but  labors  no  less  arduous  remained  behind.  Repair- 
ing to  the  court  of  France,  he  was  welcomed  with 
richly  merited  favor,  and  soon  set  sail  for  the  mouth 
of  the  Mississippi,  with  a  squadron  of  vessels  amply 
freighted  with  men  and  material  for  the  projected 
colony.  But  the  folly  and  obstinacy  of  a  worthless 
naval  commander  blighted  his  fairest  hopes.  The 
squadron  missed  the  mouth  of  the  river;  and  the 
wreck  of  one  of  the  vessels,  and  the  desertion  of  the 
commander,    completed   the    ruin   of   the   expedition. 

>  Proems  Verbal,  in  appendix  to  Sparks'  La  Salle. 


Chap.  H.] 


FRENCH  POSTS  IN  THE  WEST. 


55 


La  Salle  landed,  with  a  band  of  half-famished  follow- 
ers, on  the  coast  of  Texas ;  and  while  he  was  toiling 
with  imtired  energy  for  their  relief,  a  few  vindictive 
miscreants  conspired  against  him,  and  a  shot  from  a 
traitor's  musket  closed  the  career  of  the  iron-hearted 
discoverer. 

It  was  left  with  another  to  complete  the  enterprise 
on  which  he  had  staked  his  life;  and,  in  the  year 
1699,  Lemoine  d'Iberville  planted  the  germ  whence 
sprang  the  colony  of  Louisiana.^ 

Years  passed  on.  In  spite  of  a  vicious  plan  of 
government,  in  spite  of  the  bursting  of  the  ever-mem- 
orable Mississippi  bubble,  the  new  colony  grew  in 
wealth  and  strength.  And  now  it  remained  for 
France  to  unite  the  two  extremities  of  her  broad 
American  domain,  to  extend  forts  and  settlements 
across  the  fertile  solitudes  between  the  valley  of  the 
St.  Lawrence  and  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
intrench  herself  among  the  forests  which  lie  west  of 
the  Alleghanies,  before  the  swelling  tide  of  British 
colonization  could  overflow  those  mountain  barriers. 
At  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  her  mighty 
project  was  fast  advancing  towards  completion.  The 
great  lakes  and  streams,  the  thoroughfares  of  the 
wilderness,  were  seized  and  guarded  by  a  series  of 
posts  distributed  with  admirable  skill.  A  fort  on  the 
strait  of  Niagara  commanded  the  great  entrance  to 
the  whole  interior  country.  Another  at  Detroit  con- 
trolled the  passage  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  north. 
Another  at  St.  Mary's  debarred  all  hostile  access  to 
Lake  Superior.  Another  at  Michillimackinac  secured 
the  mouth  of  Lake  Michigan.  A  post  at  Green  Bay, 
and  one  at  St.  Joseph,  guarded  the  two  routes  to  the 


'■  ] 


a 


m ' ' ' 


^  Du  Pratz,  Hist  Louisiana,  5.    Charlevoix,  11.  259. 


56 


FRANCE  AND  ENGLAND  IN  AMERICA.        [Chap.  II. 


Chap.  U] 


4 


Mississippi,  by  way  of  the  Rivers  Wisconsin  and  Il- 
linois; while  two  posts  on  the  Wabash,  and  one  on 
the  Maumee,  made  France  the  mistress  of  the  great 
trading  highway  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Ohio.  At 
Kaskaskia,  Cahokia,  and  elsewhere  in  the  Illinois, 
little  French  settlements  had  sprung  up;  and  as  the 
canoe  of  the  voyager  descended  the  Mississippi,  he 
saw,  at  rare  intervals,  along  its  swampy  margin,  a  few 
small  stockade  forts,  half  buried  amid  the  redundancy 
of  forest  vegetation,  until,  as  he  approached  Natchez, 
the  dwellings  of  the  hahitam  of  Louisiana  began  to 
appear.  ,        ..  . ,  > 

The  forest  posts  of  France  were  not  exclusively  of 
a  military  character.  Adjacent  to  most  of  them,  one 
would  have  fo  uid  a  little  cluster  of  Canadian  dwell- 
ings, whose  tenants  lived  under  the  protection  of  the 
garrison,  and  obeyed  the  arbitrary  will  of  the  com- 
mandant; an  authority  which,  however,  was  seldom 
exerted  in  a  despotic  spirit.  In  these  detached  settle- 
ments, there  was  no  principle  of  increase.  The  charac- 
ter of  the  people,  and  of  the  government  which  ruled 
them,  were  alike  unfavorable  to  it.  Agriculture  was 
neglected  for  the  more  congenial  pursuits  of  the  fur- 
trade,  and  the  restless,  roving  Canadians,  scattered 
abroad  on  their  wild  vocation,  allied  themselves  to 
Indian  women,  and  filled  the  woods  with  a  mongrel 
race  of  bush-rangers. 

Thus  far  secure  in  the  west,  France  next  essayed 
to  gain  foothold  upon  the  sources  of  the  Ohio,  and, 
about  the  year  1748,  the  sagacious  Count  Galissonnicre 
proposed  to  bring  over  ten  thousand  peasants  from 
France,  and  plant  them  in  the  valley  of  that  beau- 
tiful river,  and  on   the  borders  of  the  lakes.^      But 

1  Smith,  Hist  Canada,  I,  208. 


while  at  < 
diers  and  i 
the  slowly 
silent  proj 
settlements 
hawk,  and 
ghanies. 
smoke  asa 
the  advan 
AUeghanie 
of  lead,  en 
and  axes  o 
title  on  th 
near.     Th< 


L^S 


Chap.  U.] 


THEIB  APPROACHING  COLLISION. 


57 


while  at  Quebec,  in  the  Castle  of  St.  Louis,  sol- 
diers and  statesmen  were  revolving  schemes  like  this, 
the  slowly-moving  power  of  England  bore  on  with 
silent  progress  from  the  east.  Already  the  British 
settlements  were  creeping  along  the  valley  of  the  .Mo- 
hawk, and  ascending  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  Alle- 
ghanies.  Forests  crashing  to  the  axe,  dark  spires  of 
smoke  ascending  from  autumnal  fires,  were  heralds  of 
the  advancing  host;  and  while,  on  one  side  of  the 
AUeghanies,  Celeron  de  Bienville  was  burying  plates 
of  lead,  engraved  with  the  arms  of  France,  the  ploughs 
and  axes  of  Virguiian  woodsmen  were  enforcing  a  surer 
title  on  the  other.  The  adverse  powers  were  drawing 
near.     The  hoar  of  collision  was  at  hand. 


I     I 


,:i  ^: ' 


■|-.9 


1  ■ 


CHAPTEE    III. 

THE  FRENCH,  THE  ENGLISH,  AND  THE  INDIANS. 

The  French  colonists  of  Canada  held,  from  the 
beginning,  a  peculiar  intimacy  of  relation  witli  tiie 
Indian  tribes.  With  the  English  colonists  it  was  far 
otherwise;  and  the  difference  sprang  from  several 
causes.  The  fur-trade  was  the  life  of  Canada;  agri- 
culture and  commerce  were  the  chief  fountains  of 
wealth  to  the  British  provinces.  The  Romish  zealots 
of  Canada  burned  for  the  conversion  of  the  heathen ; 
their  heretic  rivals  were  fired  with  no  such  ardor. 
And  finally,  while  the  ambition  of  France  grasped  at 
empu'e  over  the  farthest  deserts  of  the  went,  the 
steady  industry  of  the  English  colonist  was  co  itented 
to  cultivate  and  improve  a  narrow  strip  of  seaboard. 
Thus  it  happened  tliat  the  farmer  of  Massachusetts 
and  the  Virginian  planter  were  conversant  with  only 
a  few  bordering  tribes,  while  the  priests  and  emissa- 
ries of  France  were  roaming  the  prairies  with  the 
buffalo-hunting  Pawnees,  or  lodging  in  the  winter 
cabins  of  the  Dahcotah ;  and  swanns  of  savages,  whose 
uncouth  names  were  strange  to  Engli3h  ears,  descended 
yearly  from  the  north,  to  bring  their  beaver  and  otter 
skins  to  the  market  of  Montreal. 

The  position  of  Canada  invited  intercourse  with  the 
interior,  and  eminently  favored  her  scliemes  of  com- 
merce and  policy.     The  Iliver  St.  Lawrence,  and  the 


Chap,  m.] 


TJE  IROQUOIS  — CHAMPLAIN. 


59 


chain  of  tlie  grcftt  lakes,  opened  a  vast  extent  of  in- 
land navigation;  while  their  tributary  streams,  inter- 
locking with  the  branches  of  the  Mississippi,  afforded 
ready  access  to  that  mighty  river,  and  gave  the  rest- 
less voyager  free  range  over  half  the  continent.  But 
these  advantages  were  well  nigh  neutralized.  Nature 
opened  the  way,  but  a  watchful  and  terrible  enemy 
guarded  the  portal.  The  forests  south  of  Lake  On- 
tario gave  harborage  to  the  five  tribes  of  the  Iro- 
quois, implacable  foes  of  Canada.  They  waylaid  her 
trading  parties,  routed  her  soldiers,  murdered  her 
missionaries,  and  spread  havoc  and  woe  through  all 
her  settlements. 

It  was  a?i  evil  hour  fcv  Canada,  when,  on  the 
twenty-eighth  of  May,  1609,^  Samuel  de  Champlain, 
impelled  by  his  OAvn  adventurous  spirit,  departed  from 
the  hamlet  of  Quebec  to  fallow  a  war-party  of  Al- 
gonquins  against  their  ha,t  1  enemy,  the  Iroquois. 
Ascending  the  Sorel,  and  passing  the  rapids  at  Cham- 
bly,  he  embarked  on  the  lake  which  bears  his  name, 
and,  with  two  French  attendants,  steered  southward, 
with  his  savage  associates,  toward  the  rocky  promon- 
tory of  Tiionderoga.  They  moved  with  all  the  pre- 
caution of  Indian  warfare;  when,  at  length,  as  night 
was  closing  in,  they  descried  a  band  of  the  Iroquois 
in  their  large  canoes  of  elm  bark  approaching  through 
the  gloom.  Wild  yells  from  either  side  announced 
the  mutual  disco\ery.  Both  pnrtics  hastened  to  the 
shore,  and  all  night  long  the  forest  resounded  with 
their  discordant  war-songs  and  fierce  whoops  of  defi- 
ance. Day  dawned,  and  the  fight  began.  Bounding 
from  tree  to  tree,  the  Iroquois  pressed  forward  to  the 


:r^ 


:.:f 


n 


1  Champlain,  Voyages,  13(5,  (Paris,  1G32.)    Charlevoix,  I.  142. 


TIIE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Chap.  TE. 

attack;  but  when  Champlain  advanced  from  among 
the  Algonquins,  and  stood  full  in  sight  before  them, 
with  his  strange  attire,  his  shining  breastplate,  and 
features  unlike  their  own;  when  they  saw  the  flash 
of  his  arquebuse,  and  beheld  two  of  their  chiefs  fall 
dead,  they  oould  not  contain  their  terror,  but  fled  for 
shelter  into  the  depths  of  the  wood.  The  Algonquins 
pursued,  slaying  mrny  in  the  flight,  and  the  victory 
was  complete. 

Such  was  the  first  collision  between  the  white  men 
and  the  Iroquois;  and  Chaiiplain  flattered  himself 
tliat  the  latter  had  learned  lor  the  future  to  respect 
the  arms  of  France.  He  waS  fatally  deceived.  The 
Iroquois  recovered  from  their  terrors,  but  tl^ey  never 
forgave  the  mjury;  and  yet  it  would  be  unjust  to 
chaige  upon  Champlain  the  origin  of  the  desolating 
war-s  vvhich  were  soon  to  scourge  the  colony.  The 
Indians  of  Canada,  friends  and  neighbors  of  the 
French,  had  long  been  harassed  by  inroads  of  the 
fierce  confederates,  and  under  any  circumstances  the 
French  must  soon  have  become  parties  to  the  quarrel. 

WhatcAer  may  have  been  its  origin,  the  war  was 
fruitful  of  misery  to  the  youthful  colony.  The  passes 
were  beset  by  c-iibushed  war-pirties.  The  routes  be- 
tween Ciuebec  and  Montreal  were  watched  Avith  tiger- 
like vigilance.  BloodthirsH'  wamors  prowled  about 
the  outskirts  of  the  settlements.  Again  and  again  the 
miserable  people,  driven  >vithin  the  palisades  of  their 
forts,  looked  forth  upon  wasted  harvests  and  blazing 
roofs.  The  Island  of  Montreal  was  swept  wit,.'  fire 
and  steel.  The  fur-trade  was  interrupted,  since  for 
months  together  all  communication  was  cut  off*  with 
tho  friendly  tribes  of  the  west.  .Agriculture  was 
checked;   the   fields   lay  fallow,  and   frequent   famine 


Ciup.  m.]         EXPEDITION  OF  COUNT  FRONTENAC. 


61 


was  the  necessary  result.^  The  name  of  the  Iroquois 
became  a  by-word  of  horror  through  the  colony,  and 
to  the  suffering  Canadians  they  seemed  no  better  than 
troops  of  incarnate  fiends.  Revolting  rites  and  mon- 
strous superstitions  were  imputed  to  them ;  and,  among 
the  rest,  it  was  currently  believed  that  they  cherished 
the  custom  of  immv;lating  young  children,  burning 
them  with  fire,  and  drinking  the  ashes  mixed  with 
water  to  increase  their  bravery.'*  Yet  the  wildest 
imaginations  could  scarcely  exceed  the  truth.  At  the 
attack  of  Montreal,  they  placed  infants  over  the  em- 
bers, aid  forced  the  wretched  mothers  to  turn  the 
spit ;  ^  and  those  who  fell  within  their  clutches  endiired 
tonnents  too  hideous  for  description.  Their  ferocity 
was  equalled  only  by  their  courage  and  addi-ess. 

At  intervals,  the  afiiicted  colony  found  respite  from 
its  sufferings ;  and  through  the  efforts  of  the  Jesuits, 
fair  hopes  began  to  rise  of  propitiating  the  terrible 
foe.  At  one  time,  the  influence  of  the  priests  availed 
so  far,  that  imder  their  auspices  a  French  colony 
was  formed  in  the  very  heart  of  the  Iroquois  country ; 
but  the  settlers  were  soon  forced  to  a  precipitate 
flight,  and  the  war  broke  out  afresh.*  The  French, 
on  their  part,  were  not  idle;  they  faced  their  assail- 
ants with  characteristic  gallantry,  Courcelles,  Tracy, 
Do  la  Barre,  and  De  Nonville  invaded  by  turns,  with 
various  success,  the  forest  haunts  of  the  confederates; 
and  at  length,  in  the  year  1696,  the  veteran  Count 
Frontenac  marched  upon  their  cantons  with  all  the 
force  of  Canada.  Stemming  the  surges  of  La  Chine, 
sweeping  through  the  romantic  channels  of  the  Thou- 


I 

I 

'mi. 


1  Vimont,  Golden,  Charlevoix,  pas- 
sim. 

^  Vimont  scorns  to  bulieve  tlie 
story.    Rel.  de  la  N.  F.  1G40,  IDS. 


3  Charlevoix,  I,  549. 

4  A.  D.  1654-1658. 
N.  Y.  I.  47. 


Doc.  Hist. 


62 


THE  FRENCH,  EXGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.       [Chap.  HI. 


I 


i 

\ 


sand  Islands,  and  over  the  glimmering  surface  of  Lake 
Ontario,  and,  trailing  in  long  array  up  the  current  of 
the  Oswego,  they  disembarked  on  the  margin  of  the 
Lake  of  Onondaga,  and,  startling  the  woodland  echoes 
with  the  unwonted  clangor  of  their  trumpets,  urged 
their  perilous  march  through  the  mazes  of  the  for- 
est. Never  had  those  solitudes  beheld  so  strange  a 
pageantry.  The  Indian  allies,  naked  to  the  waist  and 
horribly  painted,  adorned  with  streaming  scalp-locks 
and  fluttering  plumes,  stole  crouching  among  the 
thickets,  or  peered  with  lynx-eyed  vision  through  the 
labyrinths  of  foliage.  Scouts  and  forest-rangers  scoured 
the  woods  in  front  and  flank  of  the  marching  columns 
— men  trained  among  the  hardship-'  of  the  fur-trade, 
thin,  sinewy,  and  strong,  arrayed  in  wild  costume  of 
beaded  moccason,  scarlet  legjr;in,  and  frock  of  buckskin, 
fantastically  garnished  with  many-colored  embroidery 
of  porcupine.  Then  came  the  levies  of  the  colony, 
in  gray  capotes  and  gaudy  sashes,  and  the  trained 
battalions  from  old  France  in  burnished  cuiiass  and 
head-piece,  veterans  of  European  wars.  Plumed  cava- 
liers were  there,  who  had  followed  the  standards  of 
Conde  or  Turenne,  and  who,  even  in  the  depths  of  a 
^vildemess,  scorned  to  lay  aside  the  martial  foppery 
which  bedecked  the  camp  and  court  of  Louis  the 
Magnificent.  The  stem  commander  was  borne  along 
upon  a  litter  in  the  midst,  his  locks  bleached  with  years, 
but  his  eye  kindling  with  the  quenchless  fire  which, 
like  a  furnace,  burned  hottest  when  its  fuel  was  almost 
spent.  Tlius,  beneath  the  sepulchral  arches  of  the  for- 
est, through  tangled  thickets,  and  over  prostrate  trunks, 
the  aged  nobleman  advanced  to  wreak  his  vengeance 
upon  empty  wigwams  and  descried  maize-fields.' 

1  Official  Pupere  of  'he  Expedition.    Doc.  Hist  N.  Y.  I.  333. 


ClIAP.  III.] 


TKIUMPHS  OF  THE  FEENCH. 


$d 


Even  the  fierce  comage  of  the  Iroquois  began  to 
quail  before  these  repeated  attacks,  while  the  grad- 
iial  growth  of  the  colony,  and  the  arrival  of  troops 
from  France,  at  length  convinced  them  that  they  could 
not  destroy  Canada.  AVith  the  opening  of  the  eigh- 
teenth centui-y,  their  rancor  showed  signs  of  abating  ; 
and  in  the  year  1726,  by  dint  of  skilful  intrigue, 
the  French  succeeded  in  erecting  a  permanent  mili- 
tary post  at  the  important  pass  of  Niagara,  within 
the  limits  of  the  confederacy.^  Meanwhile,  in  spite 
of  every  obstacle,  the  power  of  France  had  rapidly 
extended  its  boundaries  in  the  west.  French  influ- 
ence diffused  itself  through  a  thousand  channels,  among 
distant  tribes,  hostile,  for  the  most  part,  to  the  dom- 
ineering Iroquois.  Forts,  mission-houses,  and  armed 
trading  stations  secured  the  principal  passes.  Traders, 
and  coureurs  des  hois  pushed  their  adventurous  traf- 
fic into  the  wildest  deserts;  and  French  guns  and 
hatchets,  French  beads  and  cloth,  French  tobacco  and 
brandy,  were  known  from  where  the  stunted  Esqui- 
maux burrowed  in  their  snow  caves,  to  where  the 
Camanches  scoured  the  plains  of  the  south  with  their 
banditti  cavalr)\  Still  this  far-extended  commerce  con- 
tinued to  advance  westward.  In  1738,  La  Verandrye 
essayed  to  reach  those  mysterious  mountains  which, 
as  the  Indians  alleged,  lay  beyond  the  arid  deserts 
of  the  Missouri  and  the  Saskatchawan.  Indian  hos- 
tility defeated  his  enterprise,  but  not  before  he  had 
struck  far  out  into  these  unknown  wdds,  and  formed 
a  line  of  trading  posts,  one  of  which.  Fort  de  la 
Heine,  was  planned  on  the  Assinniboin,  a  hundred 
leagues  beyond   Lake  Winnipeg.^     At  that   early  pe- 


ll 


-<^ 


5 


if 
f 


'■l 


1  Doc.  Hist.  N.  Y.  I.  44C. 


2  Garneau,  II.  388. 


64 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  rNDL\J»fS       [Ciiap.  III. 


riod,  France  left  her  footsteps  upon  the  dreary  wastes 
which  even  now  have  no  other  tenants  than  the  In- 
dian buffalo-hunter  or  the  roving  trapper. 

The  fur-trade  of  the  English  colonists  opposed  but 
feeble  rivalry  to  that  of  their  hereditary  foes.  At  an 
early  period,  favored  by  the  friendship  of  the  Iro- 
quois, they  attempted  to  open  a  traffic  with  the  Al- 
gonquin tribes  of  the  great  lakes;  and  in  the  year 
1687,  Major  McGregory  ascended  with  a  boat  load  of 
goods  to  Lake  Huron,  where  his  appearance  excited 
great  commotion,  and  where  he  was  promptly  seized 
and  imprisoned  by  a  party  of  the  French.'  From 
this  time  forward,  the  English  fur-trade  languished, 
until  the  year  1725,  when  Governor  Bumet,  of  New 
York,  established  a  post  on  Lake  Ontario,  at  the  mouth 
of  the  River  Oswego,  whither,  lured  by  the  cheapness 
and  excellence  of  the  English  goods,  crowds  of  sav- 
ages soon  congregated  from  every  side,  to  the  un- 
speakable annoyance  of  the  French.^  Meanwhile,  a 
considerable  commerce  was  springing  up  with  the 
Cherokees  and  other  tribes  of  the  south ;  and  during 
the  first  half  of  the  century,  the  people  of  Pennsyl- 
vania began  to  cross  the  Allcghanies,  and  carry  on  a 
lucrative  traffic  with  the  tribes  of  the  Ohio.  In  1749, 
La  Jonquiere,  the  governor  of  Canada,  learned,  to  his 
great  indignation,  that  several  English  traders  had 
reached  Sandusky,  and  were  exerting  a  bad  influence 
upon  the  Indians  of  that  quarter;^  and  two  years  later, 
he  caused  four  of  the  intruders  to  be  seized  near  the 
Ohio,  iind  sent  prisoners  to  Canada.* 

These  early  efforts  of  the  English,  considerable  as 


1  LaIIontan,Voyages,I.  74.    Col- 
•Icn,  Memorial  on  the  Fur-Trade. 
•i  Doc.  Hist  x\.  Y.  I.  •,  14. 


3  Smith,  Hist.  Canada,  I.  214. 

4  Precis  des  Faits,  89, 


!i 


CiiAr.m.]  THE  ENGLISH  AND  THE  IROQUOIS. 


65 


they  were,  can  ill  bear  comparison  with  the  vast  ex- 
tent of  the  French  interior  commerce.  In  respect 
also  to  missionary  enterprise,  and  the  political  influ- 
ence resulting  ^-om  it,  die  French  had  every  advantage 
over  rivals  who^3  zeal  for  conversion  was  neither  khi- 
dled  by  fanaticism  nor  fostered  by  an  ambitious  gov- 
ernment. Eliot  labored  within  call  of  Boston,  while 
the  heroic  Brebeuf  faced  the  ghastly  perils  of  the 
westex-n  wilderness;  and  the  wanderings  of  Brainerd 
sink  into  insignificance  compared  with  those  of  the 
devoted  Kasles.  Yet,  in  judging  the  relative  merits 
of  the  Eomish  and  Protestant  missionaries,  it  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  while  the  former  contented  them- 
selves with  sprinkling  a.  few  drops  of  water  on  the 
forehead  of  the  warlike  proselyte,  the  latter  sought 
to  wean  him  from  his  barbarism,  and  penetrate  his 
savage  heart  with  the  truths  of  Christianity. 

In  respect,  also,  to  direct  political  influence,  the 
advantage  was  wholly  on  the  side  of  France.  The 
English  colonies,  broken  into  separate  governments, 
were  incapable  of  exercising  a  vigorous  and  consist- 
tnit  Indian  policy;  and  the  measures  of  one  govern- 
ment often  clashed  >vith  thi  .e  of  another.  Even  in 
the  separate  provinces,  the  p(  ^^:dar  nature  of  the  con- 
stitution and  the  quarrels  of  governors  and  assemblies 
were  unfavorable  to  efficient  action ;  and  this  was 
)nore  especially  the  case  in  the  province  of  Nerv  York, 
where  the  vicmity  of  the  Iroquois  rendered  strenuous 
yet  prudent  measures  of  the  utmost  importance.  The 
powerful  confederates,  hating  the  French  with  bitter 
enmity,  naturally  inclined  to  the  English  alliance; 
and  a  proper  treatment  would  have  secured  their  fiim 
and  lasting  friendship.  But,  a^  the  early  periods  of 
her  history,  the  assembly  of  New  York  was  made  up 

9  F* 


s 

m 


■0 


!  1 


-* 


66 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Cuap.  HI. 


in  great  measure  of  narrow-minded  men,  more  eagei 
to  C(m  UK  their  own  petty  immediate  interests  tlian 
to  pursue  any  far-sighted  scheme  of  T»ublic  welfare.' 
Other  causes  conspired  to  injure  tb  'iritish  interest 
in  this  quarter.  The  annual  present  sent  from  Eng- 
land to  the  Iroquois  was  often  embezzled  by  corrupt 
governors  or  their  favorites."  The  proud  chiefs  Avoro 
tlisgusted  by  the  cold  and  haughty  bearing  of  the 
English  officials,  and  a  pernicious  custom  prevailed 
of  conducting  Indian  negotiations  through  the  medium 
of  the  fur-traders,  a  class  of  men  held  in  contempt 
by  the  Iroquois,  and  known  among  them  by  the  sig- 
nificant title  of  "rum-carriers."^  In  short,  through 
uU  the  counsels  of  the  jjrovince,  Indian  affairs  were 
grossly  and  madly  neglected."* 

With  more  or  less  emphasis,  the  same  remark  holds 
true  of  all  the  other  English  colonics.^  With  those 
of  France,  it  was  far  otherwise;  and  this  difference 
between  the  rival  powers  was  naturally  incident  to 
their  difierent  forms  of  government,  and  different 
roT' r]  itions  of  development.  France  labored  with  eager 
ilili*^ence  to  conciliate  the  Indians  and  win  them  to 


1  Smith,  Hist  N.  Y.,  jxtasim. 

'^  Rev.  Military  Operations,  Mass. 
Hist  Coll.  1st  Series,  VII.  67. 

3  Golden,  Hist  Five  Nat  161. 

*  MS.  Papers  of  Cadwrikdcr  Col- 
den.  MS.  Papers  of  Sir  William 
Johnson. 

"  We  find  the  \aC  ns,  as  far  back 
as  tlie  very  confused  manuscript  rec- 
ords in  uiy  possession,  repeatedly 
upbraiding  this  province  for  their 
negligence,  their  avarice,  and  their 
want  of  assisting  them  at  a  time 
when  it  was  certainly  in  tlieir  power 
to  destroy  the  infant  colony  or  Can- 
ada, although  supported  by  many 
nations ;  and  this  is  likewise  con- 
lessed  by  the  writings  of  the  man- 


agers of  these  times."  —  MS.  Lelkr 
—  Johnson  to  the  Board  of  Trade, 
May  24,  \7<Xy. 

•'  "  I  apprehend  it  will  clearly  ap- 
pear to  you,  that  the  colonies  hud 
all  along  neglected  to  cultivate  ii 
proper  understanding  with  tlic  In- 
dians, and  from  a  mistaken  notion 
have  greatly  despised  them,  without 
considering  that  it  is  in  their  power 
to  lay  waste  and  destroy  the  fron- 
tiers. This  opinion  arose  from  our 
confidence  in  our  scattered  numbei-s, 
and  the  parsimony  of  our  people, 
who,  from  an  error  in  politics,  would 
not  expend  five  pounds  to  save  twen- 
ty."—J/S.  Letter  —  Johnson  to  the 
Board  of  Trade,  Xovemher  115,  170:}. 


X,: 


i 


Chap.  Ill] 


POLICY  OF  THE  FIIENCH. 


67 


->' 


d  at  tlie  tables 

lis  and  decorations, 

s.      lar  wiser   than 

'  the  self-complacent 

ilted  their  religious 


espouse  her  cause.  Her  agents  were  busy  in  every 
village,  studying  the  language  of  the  inmates,  com- 
plying with  their  usages,  flatteuug  their  prejudices, 
caressing  them,  cajolmg  them,  and  whispering  friendly 
warnings  in  their  ears  against  the  icked  designs  of 
the  English.  "When  a  party  oi  Indian  chiefs  visited  a 
French  fort,  they  wen  greeted  witli  the  firing  of  cannon 
and  rolling  of  drums ;  t  e\ 
of  the  otficers,  and  bribed  it 
scarlet  uniforms  and  Fr< 
their  rivals,  the  French  ncN 
dignity  of  their  guests,  nevei 
notions,  nor  ridiculed  their  ancient  eustoms.  They  met 
the  savage  half  way,  and  shoAved  an  abundant  readiness 
to  mould  their  own  features  after  his  likeness.*  Count 
Frontenac  himself,  plumed  and  painted  like  an  Indian 
chief,  danced  the  Avar-dance  and  yelled  the  war-song 
at  the  camp-fires  of  his  delighted  allies.  It  would 
have  been  Avell  had  the  French  been  less  exact  in  their 
imitations,  for  at  times  they  copied  their  model  Avith 
infamous  fidelity,  and  fell  into  excesses  scarcely  credible 
but  for  the  concurrent  testimony  of  their  OAvn  Avriters. 
Frontenac  caused  an  Iroquois  prisoner  to  be  burnt 
alive  to  strike  terror  into  his  countrymen ;  and  liou- 
vigny,  French  commandant  at  Michillimackinac,  in 
1695,  tortured  an  Iroquois  ambassador  to  death,  that 
he  might  break  off  a  negotiation  betAveen  that  people 
and  the  Wyandots.^  Nor  are  these  the  only  Avell- 
attested  instances  of  such  execrable  inhumanity.     But 


< 

»-4 


t'',    * 


,  1  \> 


1  Adair,  Post'a  Journals,  Croglian's 
Journal,  MSS.  of  Sir  W.  Johnson, 
etc.,  etc. 

2  La  Hontan,  L  177.  Potherie, 
Hist  Am.  Sept.  IL  298,  (Paris,  1729.) 

These  facts  afford  no  ground  for 
national  reflections  when  it  is  recol 


lected  that  while  Iroquois  prisoners 
were  tortured  in  the  wilds  of  Can- 
ada, Elizabeth  Gaunt  was  burned  to 
death  at  Tyburn  for  yieldinjj  to  the 
dictates  of  compassion,  and  giving 
shelter  to  a  political  offender. 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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liAIM    12.5 

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2.0 


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Hiotographic 

Sciences 

Corporation 


23  WtST  MAIN  STMIT 

WIBSTIR.N.Y.  MSM 

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68 


THE  FBENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Chap.  UL 


if  the  French  were  guilty  of  these  cruelties  against 
their  Indian  enemies,  they  were  no  less  guilty  of  un- 
worthy compliance  with  the  demands  of  their  Indian 
friends,  in  cases  where  Christianity  and  civilization 
would  have  dictated  a  prompt  refusal.  Even  the  brave 
Montcalm  stained  his  bright  name  by  abandoning  the 
hapless  defenders  of  Oswego  and  William  Henry  to  the 
tender  mercies  of  an  Indian  mob. 

In  general,  however,  the  Indian  policy  of  the  French 
cannot  be  charged  with  obsequiousness.  Complaisance 
was  tempered  with  dignity.  At  an  early  period,  they 
discerned  the  peculiarities  of  the  native  character,  and 
clearly  saw  that,  while,  on  the  one  hand,  it  was  neces- 
sary to  avoid  giving  offence,  it  was  not  less  necessaiy,  ^ 
on  the  other,  to  assiune  a  bold  demeanor  and  a  show 
of  power ;  to  caress  with  one  hand,  and  grasp  a  drawn 
sword  with  the  other.^  Every  crime  against  a  French- 
man was  promptly  chastised  by  the  sharp  agency  of 
military  law;  while  among  the  English,  the  offender 
could  only  be  reached  through  the  medium  of  the  civil 
courts,  whose  delays,  imcertainties,  and  evasions  excited 
the  wonder  and  pj.'ovoked  the  contempt  of  the  Indians. 

It  was  by  obseivance  of  the  course  indicated  above 
—  a  course  higMy  judicious  in  a  political  point  of 
view,  whatever  it  may  have  been  to  the  eye  of  the  mor- 
alist—  that  the  French  were  enabled  to  maintain 
themselves  in  small  detached  posts,  far  aloof  from  the 
parent  colony,  and  environed  by  barbarous  tribes,  where 
an  English  garrison  would  have  been  cut  off  in  a 
twelvemonth.  They  professed  to  hold  these  posts,  not 
in  their  own  right,  but  purely  through  the  grace  and 
condescension  of  the  surrounding  savages ;  and  by  this 


1  Le  Jeune,  Rel.  de  la  N.  F.  1636, 193. 


Chap.  HI.]     AMALGAMATION  OF  FRENCH  AND  INDIANS, 


69 


conciliating  assurance  they  sought  to  make  good  their 
^iipition,  until,  with  their  growing  strength,  conciliation 
^^^Duld  no  more  be  needed. 

In  its  efforts  to  win  the  friendship  and  alliance  of 
the  Indian  tribes,  the  French  government  found  every 
advantage  in  the  peculiar  character  of  its  subjects  — 
that  pliant  and  plastic  temper  which  forms  so  marked 
a  contrast  to  the  stubborn  spirit  of  the  Englishman. 
From  the  beginning,  the  French  showed  a  tendency  to 
amalgamate  with  the  forest  tribes.  "  The  manners  of  the 
savages,"  writes  the  Baron  La  Hontan,  "  are  perfectly 
agreeable  to  my  palate ; "  and  many  a  restless  adven- 
turer, of  high  or  low  degree,  might  have  echoed  the 
words  of  the  erratic  soldier.  At  first,  great  hopes  were 
entertained  that,  by  the  mingling  of  French  and  In- 
dians, the  latter  would  be  won  over  to  civilization  and 
the  church;  but  the  effect  was  precisely  the  reverse; 
for,  as  Charlevoix  observes,  the  savages  did  not  become 
French,  but  the  French  became  savages.  Hundreds 
betook  themselves  to  the  forest,  never  more  to  return. 
These  outflowuigs  of  French  civilization  were  merged 
in  the  waste  of  barbarism,  as  a  river  is  lost  in  the  sands 
of  the  desert.  The  wandering  Frenchman  chose  a  wife 
or  a  concubine  among  his  India^n  friends ;  and,  in  a 
few  generations,  scarcely  a  tribe  of  the  west  was  free 
from  an  iniusioi)  of  Celtic  blood.  The  French  empire 
in  America  could  exhibit  among  its  subjects  every  shade 
of  color  jfrom  white  to  red,  every  gradation  of  culture 
from  the  highest  civilization  of  Paris  to  the  rudest 
barbarism  of  the  wigwam. 

The  fur-trade  engendered  a  peculiar  class  of  men, 
known  by  the  appropriate  name  of  bush-rangers,  or 
coureurs  des  hoi%  half-civilized  vagrants,  whose  chief 
vocation  was  conducting  the  canoes  of   the  traders 


■J  111 


f  {! 


I" 


■   I' 


I       I 

[     1 

*  It 


70 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Chap.  HI. 


I 


along  the  lakes  and  rivers  of  the  interior:  many 
of  them,  however,  shaking  loose  every  tie  of  blc^d 
and  kindred,  identified  themselves  with  the  Indian  .^ 
and  sank  into  utter  barbarism.  In  many  a  squalid 
camp  among  the  plains  and  forests  of  the  west,  the 
traveller  would  have  encoimtered  men  owning  the 
blood  and  speaking  the  language  of  France,  yet,  in 
their  wild  and  swarthy  visages  and  barbarous  costume, 
seeming  more  akin  to  those  with  whom  they  had 
cast  their  lot.  The  renegade  of  civilization  caught 
the  habits  and  imbibed  the  prejudices  of  his  chosen 
associates.  He  loved  to  decorate  his  long  hair  with 
eagle  feathers,  to  make  his  face  hideous  with  vermil- 
ion, ochre,  and  soot,  and  to  adorn  his  greasy  hunting 
frock  with  horse-hair  fringes.  His  dwelling,  if  he, 
had  one,  was  a  wigwam.  He  lounged  on  a  bear-skin 
while  his  squaw  boiled  his  venison  and  lighted  his 
pipe.  In  hunting,  in  dancing,  in  singing,  in  taking 
a  scalp,  he  rivalled  the  genuine  Indian.  His  mind 
was  tinctured  with  the  superstitions  of  the  forest. 
He  had  faith  in  the  magic  drum  of  the  conjurei ; 
he  w*'  'lot  sure  that  a  thunder  cloud  could  not  be 
frigh  1  away  by  whistling  at  it  through  the  wing 
bone  of  an  eagle ;  he  carried  the  tail  of  a  rattlesnake 
in  his  bullet  pouch  by  way  of  amulet ;  and  he  placed 
implicit  trust  in  the  prophetic  truth  of  his  dreams. 
This  class  of  men  is  not  yet  extinct.  In  the  cheer- 
less wilds  beyond  the  northern  lakes,  or  among  the 
mountain  solitudes  of  the  distant  west,  they  may  still 
be  found,  unchanged  in  life  and  character  since  the 
day  when  Louis  the  Great  claimed  sovereigiity  over 
this  desert  empire. 

Tlie  borders  of  the   English  colonies  displayed   no 
such  phenomena  of  mingling  races ;  for  here  a  thorny 


U"-nh 


Chap.  in.l 


ENGLISH  FUB-TBADEBS. 


71 


and  impracticable  banier  divided  the  white  man  from 
the  red.  The  English  fur-traders,  and  the  rude  men 
in  their  employ,  showed,  it  is  true,  an  ample  alacrity 
to  fling  off  the  restraints  of  civilization ;  but  though 
they  became  barbarians,  they  did  not  become  Indians; 
and  scorn  on  the  one  side,  and  hatred  on  the  other, 
still  marked  the  intercourse  of  the  hostile  races. 
With  the  settlers  of  the  frontier  it  was  much  the 
same.  Rude,  fierce,  and  contemptuous,  they  daily 
encroached  upon  the  hunting-grounds  of  the  Indians, 
and  then  paid  them  for  the  injury  with  abuse  and 
insult,  curses  and  threats.  Thus  the  native  popular 
tion  shrank  back  from  before  the  English,  as  from 
before  an  advancing  pestilence;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  in  the  very  heart  of  Canada,  Indian  communi- 
ties sprang  up,  cherished  by  the  government,  and 
favored  by  the  easy-tempered  people.  At  Lorette,  at 
Caughnawaga,  at  St.  Francis,  and  elsewhere  within 
the  province,  large  bands  were  gathered  together,  con- 
sisting in  part  of  fugitives  from  the  borders  of  the 
hated  English,  and  aiding,  in  time  of  war,  to  swell 
the  forces  of  the  French  in  repeated  forays  against 
the  settlements  of  New  York  and  New  England. 

There  was  one  of  the  English  provinces  marked 
out  from  among  its  brethren  by  the  peculiar  charac- 
ter of  its  founders,  and  by  the  coui-se  of  conduct 
which  was  there  pursued  towards  the  Indian  tribes. 
William  Penn,  his  mind  warmed  with  a  broad  philan- 
thropy, and  enlightened  by  liberal  views  of  human 
government  and  human  rights,  planted  on  the  banks 
of  the  Delaware  the  colony  which,  vivified  by  the 
principles  it  embodied,  grew,  with  a  marvellous  rapid- 
ity, into  the  great  commonwealth  of  Pennsylvania. 
Penn's  treatment  of  the  Indians  was  equally  prudent 


■M 


i; 


-5    » 


*  'X 
.  "-  * 

«  i 
\  1 

'I 

1  !, 


-  ;  .  I 


72 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Chap.  HI. 


! 

1 


. 


and  humane,  and  its  results  were  of  high  advantage  to 
the  colony;  hut  these  results  have  been  exaggerated, 
and  the  treatment  which  produced  them  made  the 
theme  of  inordinate  praise.  It  required  no  great  be- 
nevolence to  urge  the  Quakers  to  deal  kindly  with 
their  savage  neighbors.  They  were  bound  in  common 
sense  to  propitiate  them ;  since,  by  incurring  their  re- 
sentment, they  would  involve  themselves  in  the  dilem- 
ma of  submitting  their  necks  to  the  tomahawk,  or 
wielding  the  carnal  weapon,  in  glaring  defiance  of 
their  pacific  principles.  In  paying  the  ^Indians  for 
the  lands  which  his  colonists  occupied,  —  a  piece  of 
justice  which  has  been  greeted  with  a  general  clamor 
of  applause,  —  Penn,  as  he  himself  confesses,  acted  on 
the  prudent  counsel  of  Compton,  Bishop  of  London.? 
Nor  is  there  any  truth  in  the  representations  of  Eay- 
nal  and  other  eulogists  of  the  Quaker  legislator,  who 
hold  him  up  to  the  world  as  the  only  European  who 
ever  acquired  the  Indian  lands  by  purchase,  instead 
of  seizing  them  by  fraud  or  violence.  The  example 
of  purchase  had  been  set  fifty  years  before  by  the 
Puritans  of  New  England;  and  several  of  the  other 
colonies  had  more  recently  pursued  the  same  just  and 
jjrudent  course.'' 

With  regard  to  the  alleged  results  of  the  pacific 
conduct  of  the  Quakers,  our  admiration  will  diminish 
on    closely  viewing    the    circumstances    of   the    case. 


1  "I  have  exactly  followed  the 
Bishop  of  London's  counsel,  by  buy- 
ing, and  not  taking  away,  the  natives' 
land." — PenrCa  Letter  to  the  AKnialry, 
Aug.  14, 1G83.—  See  Chalmers,  Pollt 
Ann.  (JG(). 

2  "  If  any  of  the  salvages  pretend 
right  of  inheritance  to  all  or  any  part 
of  the  lands  granted  in  our  patent, 
we  pray  you  endeavor  to  purchase 


their  tytle,  that  we  may  avoid  the 
least  scruple  of  intrusion."  —  InatruC' 
tionsto  Endicot,  1629. — See  Hazard, 
State  Papers,  I.  2G3. 

"  The  inhabitants  of  New  England 
had  never,  except  in  the  territory  of 
the  Pequods,  taken  possession  of  a 
foot  of  land  without  flrst  obtaining  a 
title  from  the  Indians."  —  Bancrofl, 
Hitt.  U.  S.  IL  98. 


« 

;t- 

.    V 

'  1 

Chap,  ni-l 

THE 

QUAKERS 

AND 

THE  INDIANS. 

73 

/ 

The  position  of  the  colony  was  a  most  fortunate  one. 
Had  the  Quakers  planted  their  settlement  on  the 
banks  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  or  among  the  warlike 
tribes  of  New  England,  it  may  well  be  doubted  whether 
their  shaking  of  hands  and  assurances  of  tender  regard 
would  long  have  availed  to  save  them  from  the  visita- 
tions of  the  scalping-knife.  But  the  Delawares,  the 
people  on  whose  territory  their  colony  was  planted, 
were,  like  themselves,  debarred  the  use  of  arms.  The 
Iroquois  had  conquered  them,  and  reduced  them  to 
abject  submission,  wringing  from  them  a  yearly  tribute, 
disarming  them,  forcing  them  to  adopt  the  opprobrious 
name  of  women^  and  forego  the  right  of  war.  The 
humbled  Delawares  were  but  too  happy  to  receive 
the  hand  extended  to  them,  and  dwell  in  friendship 
with  their  pacific  neighbors;  since  to  have  lifted  the 
hatchet  would  have  brought  upon  their  heads  the 
vengeance  of  their  conquerors,  whose  good  will  Perm 
had  taken  pains  to  secure.^ 

The  sons  of  Penn,  his  successors  in  the  proprietor* 
ship  of  the  province,  did  not  evince  the  same  kindly 
feeling  towards  the  Indians  which  had  distinguished 
their  father.  Earnest  to  acquire  new  lands,  they  com- 
menced, through  their  agents,  a  series  of  unjust  meas- 
ures, which  gradually  alienated  the  attachment  of  the 
Indians,  and,  after  a  peace  of  seventy  years,  produced 
a  most  disastrous  rupture.  The  Quaker  population 
of  the  colony  sympathized  in  the  kindness  which  its 
founder  had  cherished  towards  the  benighted  race. 
This  feeling  was  strengthened  by  years  of  friendly 
intercourse;  and  except  where  private  interest  was 
concerned,   the  Quakers   made    good  their  reiterated 


■  ) 

'1 


!  1 


^,j!l  ' 

"■:■       i  ■ 

-1:11 

:'-| 


1  He  paid  twice  for  his   lands ;    them  by  right  of  conquest,  and  once 
once  to  the  Iroquois,  who  claimed    to  their  occupints,  the  Delawares. 

10  o 


:f^ 


74 


THE  French,  English,  and  Indians.    [Chap.  ni. 


professions  of  attachment.  Kindness  to  the  Indian 
was  the  glory  of  their  sect.  As  years  wore  on,  this 
feeling  was  wonderfully  reenforced  by  the  influence 
of  party  spirit.  The  time  arrived  when,  alienated  by 
English  encroachment  on  the  one  hand  and  French 
seduction  on  the  other,  the  Indians  began  to  assume 
a  threatening  attitude  towards  the  province ;  and 
many  voices  urged  the  necessity  of  a  resort  to  arms. 
This  measure,  repugnant  alike  to  their  pacific  princi- 
ples and  to  their  love  of  the  Indians,  was  strenuously 
opposed  by  the  Quakers.  Their  aflection  for  the  in- 
jured race  was  now  inflamed  into  a  sort  of  benevo- 
lent fanaticism.  The  more  rabid  of  the  sect  would 
scarcely  confess  that  an  Indian  could  ever  do  wrong. 
In  their  view,  he  was  always  sinned  against,  always 
the  innocent  victim  of  injury  and  abuse ;  and  in  the 
days  of  the  final  rupture,  when  the  woods  were  fuU 
of  furious  war-parties,  and  the  German  and  Irish 
settlers  on  the  frontier  were  butchered  by  hundreds, 
when  the  western  sky  was  darkened  with  the  smoke 
of  burning  settlements,  and  the  wretched  fugitives  were 
flying  in  crowds  across  the  Susquehanna,  a  large  party 
among  the  Quakers,  secure  by  their  Philadelphia  fire- 
sides, could  not  see  the  necessity  of  waging  even  a 
defensive  war  against  their  favorite  people.^ 

The  encroachments  on  the  part  of  the  proprietors, 
which  have  been  alluded  to  above,  and  which  many 
of  the  Quakers  viewed  with  disapproval,  consisted  in 


1  1755-1763.  The  feelings  ofthe 
Quakers  at  this  time  may  be  gathered 
from  the  following  sources:  MS.  Ac- 
count of  the  Rise  and  Progress  of 
the  Friendly  Association  for  gaining 
and  preserving  Peace  with  Uie  In- 
dians by  pacific  Measures.  Address 
of  the  Friendly  Association  to  Gov- 


ernor Denny.  See  Proud,  Hist  Pa., 
qapentUx.  Haz.,  Pa.  Reg.  VIII.  273, 
293, 323.  But  a  much  livelier  pic- 
ture of  the  prevailing  excitement 
will  be  found  in  a  series  of  party 
pamphlets,  published  at  Philadelphia 
in  the  year  1764. 


Chaf.  UI.] 


TIIE  WALKING  PURCHASE. 


m 


the  fraudulent  interpretation  of  Indian  deeds  of  con- 
veyance, and  in  the  granting  out  of  lands  without 
any  conveyance  at  all.  The  most  notorious  of  these 
transactions,  and  the  one  most  lamentable  in  its  re- 
sults, was  commenced  in  the  year  1737,  and  known 
by  the  name  of  the  walking  purchase.  An  old,  for- 
gotten deed  was  raked  out  of  the  dust  of  the  previous 
century,  a  deed  wliich  was  in  itself  of  doubtful  va- 
lidity, 8Jid  which,  moreover,  had  been  virtually  can- 
celled by  a  subsequent  agreement.  On  this  rotten 
title  the  proprietors  laid  claim  to  a  valuable  tract  of 
land  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Delaware.  Its  western 
boundary  was  to  be  defined  by  a  line  drawn  from  a 
certain  point  on  Neshaminey  Creek,  in  a  north-west- 
erly direction,  as  far  as  a  man  could  walk  in  a  day 
and  a  half.  From  the  end  of  the  walk,  a  line  drawn 
eastward  to  the  River  Delaware  was  to  form  the  north- 
ern limit  of  the  purchase.  The  proprietors  sought 
out  the  most  active  men  who  could  be  heard  of,  and 
put  them  in  training  for  the  walk;  at  the  same  time 
laying  out  a  smooth  road  along  the  intended  course, 
that  no  obstructions  might  mar  their  speed.  By  this 
means  an  incredible  distance  was  accomplished  within 
the  limited  time.  .And  now  it  only  remained  to  adjust 
the  northern  bou  'ixry.  Instead  of  running  the  line 
directly  to  the  Delaware,  according  to  the  evident 
meaning  of  the  deed,  the  proprietors  inclined  it  so 
far  to  the  north  as  to  form  an  acute  angle  with  the 
river,  and  enclose  many  hundred  thousand  acres  of 
valuable  land,  which  would  otherwise  have  remained 
in  the  hands  of  the  Indians.*     The  land  thus  in- 

1  Causes  of  the  Alienation  of  the  written  by  Charles  Thompson,  after- 
Delaware  and  Shawanoe  Indians  from  wards  secretanr  of  Congress,  and  de- 
the  British  Interest,  33,  68,  (Lond.  signed  to  explain  the  causes  of  the 
1759.)     This  work  is  a  pamphlet,  rupture  which  took  place  at  the  out< 


m 

' 

«■ 

1 

^■IK^ 

^^^9 

'r  M(i 


I    : 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Cha».  HI. 

famously  obtained  lay  in  the  Forks  of  the  Delaware, 
above  Easton,  and  was  then  occupied  by  a  powerful 
branch  of  the  Delawares,  who,  to  their  unspeakable 
amazement,  now  heard  the  summons  to  quit  forever 
their  populous  village  and  fields  of  half-grown  maize. 
In  rage  and  distress  they  refused  to  obey,  and  the 
proprietors  were  in  a  perplexing  dilemma.  Force  was 
necessary;  but  a  Quaker  l^slature  would  never  con- 
sent to  fight,  and  especially  to  fight  against  Indians. 
An  expedient  was  hit  upon,  at  once  safe  and  effect- 
ual. The  Iroquois  were  sent  for.  A  deputation  of 
their  chiefs  appeared  at  Philadelphia,  and  having  been 
well  bribed,  and  deceived  by  false  accounts  of  the 
transaction,  they  consented  to  remove  the  refractory 
Delawares.  The  delinquents  were  summoned  before 
their  conquerors,  and  the  Iroquois  orator,  Canassatego, 
a  man  of  noble  stature  and  imposing  presence,*  look- 
ing with  a  grim  countenance  on  his  cowering  audi- 
tors, addressed  them  in  the  following  words:  — 

"You  ought  to  be  taken  by  the  hair  of  the  head 
and  shaken  soundly  till  you  recover  your  senses.  You 
don't  know  what  you  are  doing.  Our  brother  Onas" 
cause  is  very  just.  On  the  other  hand,  your  cause  is 
bad,  and  you  are  bent  to  break  the  chain  of  friend- 
ship. How  came  you  to  take  upon  you  to  sell  land 
at  all  ^  We  conquered  you ;  we  made  women  of  you  ; 
you  know  you  are  women,  and  can  no  more  sell  land 


break  of  die  French  war.  The  text 
is  supported  by  copious  references  to 
treaties  and  documents.  I  have  seen 
&  copy  in  the  possession  of  Francis 
Fisher,  Esq.,  of  Philadelphia,  con- 
tainingf  marginal  notes  in  the  hand- 
writing of  James  Hamilton,  who  was 
twice  governor  of  the  province  under 
the  proprietary  instructions.  In  these 


notes,  though  he  cavils  at  several  un- 
important points  of  the  relation,  he 
suners  the  essential  matter  to  pass 
unchallenged. 

1  Witham  Marshe's  Journal. 

^  OnoB  was  the  name  given  by  the 
Indians  to  William  Penn  and  his 
successors. 


■>> 


V 


I  .: 


M  I 


f-  ^ ' 


Caxr.  m.] 


TYRANNY  OF  THE  IROQUOIS.       f 


m 


than  women.  This  land  you  claun  is  gone  down  your 
throats;  you  have  been  furnished  with  clothes,  meat, 
and  drink,  by  the  goods  paid  you  for  it,  and  now  you 
want  it  again,  like  children  as  you  are.  What  makes 
you  sell  land  in  the  dark?  Did  you  ever  tell  us  you 
had  sold  this  land?  Did  we  ever  receive  any  part, 
even  the  value  of  a  pipe-shank,  from  you  for  it  ?  "We 
charge  you  to  remove  instantly ;  we  don't  give  you 
the  liberty  to  think  about  it.  You  are  women.  Take 
the  advice  of  a  wise  man,  and  remove  immediately. 
You  may  return  to  the  other  side  of  Delaware,  where 
you  came  from;  but  we  do  not  know  whether,  con- 
sidering how  you  have  demeaned  yourselves,  you  will 
be  permitted  to  live  there;  or  whether  you  have  not 
swallowed  that  land  down  your  throats  as  well  as  the 
land  on  this  side.  We  therefore  assign  you  two  places 
to  go,  either  to  Wyoming  or  Shamokin.  We  shall 
then  have  you  more  under  our  eye,  and  shaU  see  how 
you  behave.  Don't  deliberate,  but  take  this  belt  of 
wampum,  and  go  at  once."^  ,19  7,^,... 

The  unhappy  Delawares  dared  not  disobey  this  ar- 
bitrary mandate.  They  left  their  ancient  homes,  and 
removed,  as  they  had  been  ordered,  to  the  Susque- 
hanna, where  some  settled  at  Shamokin,  and  some  at 
Wyoming.*'  From  an  early  period,  the  Indians  had 
been  annoyed  by  the  unlicensed  intrusion  of  settlers 
upon  their  lands,  and,  in  1728,  they  had  bitterly 
complained  of  the  wrong.^  The  evil  continued  to  in- 
crease. Many  families,  chiefly  German  and  Irish,  be- 
gan to  cross  the  Susquehanna  and  build  their  cabins 
along  the  valleys  of  the  Juniata  and  its  tributary 
waters.     Tlie  Delawares  sent  frequent  remonstrances 


^  Minutes  of  Indian  council  held 
at  Philadelphia,  1742. 


3  Chapman,  Hist  Wyoming,  19. 
3  Colonial  Records,  III.  340. 
G* 


jn 


, . « 
H  1 


,i^' 


<i   I 


^:f 


' 

.jj 

n  Wf  < 

78 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [ChatIII 


from  their  new  abodes,  and  the  Iroquois  themselves 
made  angry  complaints,  declaring  that  the  lands  of 
the  Juniata  were  theirs  by  right  of  conquest,  and  that 
they  had  given  them  to  their  cousins,  the  DelawarcH, 
for  hunting-grounds.  Some  efforts  at  redress  were 
made ;  but  the  remedy  proved  ineffectual,  and  the  dis- 
content of  the  Indians  increased  with  every  year. 
The  Shawanoes,  with  many  of  the  Delawares,  removed 
westward,  where,  for  a  time,  they  would  be  safe  from 
intrusion ;  and  by  the  middle-  of  the  century,  the  Del- 
aware tribe  were  separated  into  two  divisions,  one  of 
which  remained  upon  the  Susquehanna,  while  the 
other,  in  conjunction  with  the  Shawanoes,  dwelt  on 
the  waters  of  the  Alleghany  and  the  Muskingum. 

But  now  the  French  began  to  push  their  advanced 
posts  into  the  valley  of  the  Ohio.  Most  unhappily 
for  the  English  interest,  they  foimd  the  irritated  minds 
of  the  Indians  in  a  state  which  favored  their  efforts 
at  seduction,  and  held  forth  a  flattering  promise  that 
tribes  so  long  faithful  to  the  English  might  soon  be 
won  over  to  espouse  the  cause  of  France. 

While  the  English  interests  wore  so  inauspicious 
an  aspect  in  this  quarter,  their  prospects  were  not 
much  better  among  the  Iroquois.  Since  the  peace 
of  Utrecht,  in  1713,  these  powerful  tribes  had  so  far 
foi^tten  their  old  malevolence  against  the  French, 
that  the  latter  were  enabled  to  bring  all  their  ma- 
chinery of  conciliation  to  bear  upon  them.  They 
turned  the  opportunity  to  such  good  account  as  not 
only  to  smooth  away  the  asperity  of  their  ancient  foes, 
but  also  to  rouse  in  their  minds  a  growing  jealousy 
against  the  English.  Several  accidental  circumstances 
did  much  to  aggravate  this  feeling,  llie  Iroquois 
were   in    the    habit    of   sending  out  frequent   war- 


Chat,  m] 


FATHER  PICQUET. 


m 


parties  against  their  enemies,  the  Cherokees  and  Cataw- 
bas,  who  dwelt  near  the  borders  of  Carolina  and  Vir- 
ginia ;  and  in  these  forays  the  invaders  often  became  so 
seriously  embroiled  with  the  white  settlers,  that  sharp 
frays  took  place,  and  an  open  war  seemed  likely  to 


1 


ensue. 

It  was  with  great  difficulty  that  the  irritation  of 
these  untoward  accidents  was  allayed ;  and  even  then 
enough  still  remained  in  the  neglect  of  governments, 
the  insults  of  traders,  and  the  haughty  bearir"  of  offi- 
cials, to  disgust  the  proud  confederates  with  their 
English  allies.  In  the  war  of  1745,  they  yielded  but 
cold  and  doubtful  aid ;  and  fears  were  entertained  of 
their  final  estrangement.'  This  result  became  still 
more  imminent,  when,  in  the  year  1749,  the  French 
priest  Picquet  estabUshed  his  mission  of  La  Presenta- 
tion on  the  St.  Lawrence,  at  the  site  of  Ogdensburg.^ 
This  pious  father,  like  the  martial  churchmen  of  an 
earlier  day,  deemed  it  no  scandal  to  gird  on  earthly 
armor  against  the  enemies  of  the  faith.  He  built  a 
fort  and  founded  a  settlement ;  he  mustered  the  Indians 
about  him  from  far  and  near,  organized  their  govern- 
ments, and  marshalled  their  war-parties.  From  the 
crenelled  walls  of  his  mission-house  the  warlike  apostle 
could  look  forth  upon  a .  military  colony  of  his  own 
creating,  upon  farms  and  clearings,  white  Canadian 
cabins,  and  the  bark  lodges  of  many  an  Indian  horde 
which  he  had  gathered  imder  his  protecting  wing.  A 
chief  object  of  the  settlement  was  to  form  a  barrier 
against  the  English;  but  the  purpose  dearest  to  the 
missionary's  heart  was  to  gain  over  the  Iroquois  to 


\v 


V 


*'.' 


.i|: 


1  Letter  of  Governor  Spotswood, 
of  Virginia,  Jan.  25, 1730.  See  Col- 
onial Records  of  Pa.  III.  75. 


3  Minutes  of  Indian  Council,  1746. 
3  Doc.  Hist.  N.  Y.  I.  423. 


i^  ' 


I 


80 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Chap.  III. 


the  side  of  France ;  and  in  this  he  succeeded  so  well, 
that,  as  a  writer  of  good  authority  declares,  tiie  num- 
ber of  their  warriors  within  the  circle  of  his  influence 
surjjassed  the  whole  remaining  force  of  the  con- 
federacy.* ^;%j"^«*v 

Thoughtful  men  in  the  English  colonies  saw  with 
anxiety  the  growing  defection  of  the  Iroquois,  and 
dreaded  lest,  in  the  event  of  a  war  with  France,  her 
ancient  foes  might  now  be  found  her  friends.  But  in 
this  ominous  conjuncture,  one  strong  influence  was  at 
work  to  bind  the  confederates  to  their  old  alliance; 
and  this  influence  was  wielded  by  a  man  so  remarkable 
in  his  character,  and  so  conspicuous  an  actor  in  the 
scenes  of  the  ensuing  history,  as  to  demand  at  least 
some  passing  notice.  \ 

About  the  year  1734,  in  consequence,  it  is  said,  of 
the  hapless  issue  of  a  love  afl*air,  William  Johnson,  a 
young  Irishman,  came  over  to  America  at  the  age  of 
nineteen,  where  he  assumed  the  charge  of  an  extensive 
tract  of  wild  land  in  the  province  of  New  York,  be- 
longing to  liis  uncle.  Admiral  Sir  Peter  Warren. 
Settling  in  the  valley  of  the  Mohawk,  he  carried  on 
a  prosperous  traffic  with  the  Indians;  and  while  he 
mpidly  rose  to  wealth,  he  gained,  at  the  same  time,  an 
extraordinary  influence  over  the  neighboring  Iroquois. 
As  his  resources  increased,  he  buUt  two  mansions 
in  the  valley,  known  respectively  by  the  names  of 
Johnson  Castle  and  Johnson  Hall,  tlie  latter  of  whicli, 
a  well-constructed  building  of  wood  and  stone,  is  still 
standing  in  the  village  of  Johnstown.  Johnson  Castle 
was  situated  at  some  distance  higher  up  the  river. 
Both  were  fortified  against  attack,  and  the  latter  was 


success, 


1  MS.  Letter  — Coldon  to  Lord  Halifax,  no  date. 


citAP.  ni] 


SIR  WILLIAM  JOHNSON. 


81 


surrounded  with  cabins  built  for  the  reception  of  the 
Indians,  who  often  came  in  crowds  to  visit  the  propri- 
etor, invading  his  dwelling  at  all  unseasonable  hours, 
loitering  in  the  doorways,  spreading  their  blankets  in 
the  passages,  and  infecting  the  air  with  the  fumes  of 
stale  tobacco. 

Johnson  supplied  the  place  of  his  former  love  by 
a  young  Dutch  damsel,  who  bore  him  several  children ; 
and,  in  justice  to  the  latter,  he  married  her  upon  her 
death-bed.  Soon  afterwards  he  found  another  favorite 
in  the  person  of  Molly  Brant,  sister  of  the  celebrated 
Mohawk  war-chief,  whose  black  eyes  and  laughing 
face  caught  his  fancy,  as,  fluttering  with  ribbons,  she 
galloped  past  liim  at  a  muster  of  the  Tryon  county 
militia.  •        ■    • 

Johnson's  importance  became  so  conspicuous,  that 
when  the  French  war  broke  out  in  1755,  he  was  made 
a  major-general;  and  soon  after,  the  colonial  troops 
under  his  command  gained  the  battle  of  Lake  George 
against  the  French  forces  of  Baron  Dieskau.  For  this 
success,  for  which,  however,  the  commander  was  entitled 
to  little  credit,  he  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  baronet, 
ai^d  rewarded  with  the  gift  of  five  thousand  pounds 
from  the  king.  About  this  time,  he  was  appointed 
superintendent  of  Indian  affairs  for  the  northern  tribes, 
a  station  in  which  he  did  signal  service  to  the  country. 
In  1759,  when  General  Prideaux  was  killed  by  the 
bursting  of  a  cohom  in  the  trenches  before  Niagara, 
Johnson  succeeded  to  his  command,  routed  the  French 
in  another  pitched  battle,  and  soon  raised  the  red  cross 
of  England  on  the  conquered  rampart  of  the  fort. 
After  the  peace  of  1763,  he  lived  for  many  years  at 
Johnson  Hall,  constantly  enriclied  by  the  increasing 
value  of  his  vast  estate,  and  surrounded   bv  a  hardv 

u 


1  -1* 


%2 


THE  FRENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDIANS.      [Chap.  HI. 


Highland  tenantry,  devoted  to  his  interests ;  b:  vhen 
the  tempest  which  had  long  been  brewing  seemed  at 
length  about  to  break,  and  signs  of  a  speedy  rupture 
with  the  mother  country  thickened  with  every  day,  he 
stood  wavering  in  an  agony  of  indecision,  divided 
between  his  loyalty  to  the  sovereign  who  was  the  source 
of  all  his  honors,  and  his  reluctance  to  become  the 
agent  of  a  murderous  Indian  warfare  against  his 
countrymen  and  fiiends.  His  final  resolution  was 
never  taken.  In  the  summer  of  1774,  he  was  attacked 
with  a  sudden  illness,  and  died  within  a  few  hours,  in 
the  sixtieth  year  of  his  age,  hurried  to  his  grave  by 
mental  distress,  or,  as  many  believed,  by  the  act  of  his 
own  hand. 

Nature  had  well  fitted  him  for  the  position  in  which 
his  propitious  stars  had  cast  his  lot.  His  person  was 
tall,  erect,  and  strong;  his  features  grave  and  manly. 
His  direct  and  upright  dealings,  his  courage,  elo- 
quence, and  addix3ss  were  sure  passports  to  favor  in 
Indian  eyes.  He  had  a  singular  facility  of  adaptation. 
In  the  camp,  or  at  the  council-board,  in  spite  of  his 
defective  education,  he  bore  himself  as  became  his 
station;  but  at  home  he  was  seen  drinking  flip  and 
smoking  tobacco  with  the  Dutch  boors,  his  neighbors, 
talking  of  improvements  or  the  price  of  beavcr-skins ; 
and  in  the  Indian  villages  he  would  feast  on  dog's  flesh, 
dance  with  the  warriors,  and  harangue  his  attentive 
auditors  with  all  the  dignity  of  an  Iroquois  sachem. 
His  temper  was  g(?nial;  he  encouraged  rustic  sports, 
and  was  respected  and  beloved  alike  by  whites  and 
Indians. 

His  good  qualities,  however,  were  alloyed  with  seri- 
ous defects.     His  mind  was  as  coarse  as  it  was  vigor- 


ous 


no  wn«  vnin  n 


f  li 


IS  rnni 


ifl 


iiitliinnpf*    nn 


i\   } 


IPinor 


Chap,  ni.] 


POSITION  OP  PARTIES. 


88 


quite  free  from  any  scruple  of  delicacy,  he  lost  no 
opportunity  of  proclaiming  them.  His  nature  was 
eager  and  ambitious  ;  and  in  pushing  his  own  way,  he 
was  never  distinguished  by  an  anxious  solicitude  for 
the  rights  of  others.^  •  ^ 

At  the  time  of  which  we  speak,  his  fortunes  had  not 
reached  their  zenith ;  yet  his  influence  was  great,  and 
during  the  war  of  1745,  when  he  held  the  chief  control 
of  Indian  affairs  in  New  York,  it  was  exercised  in  a 
manner  most  beneficial  to  the  province.  After  the 
peace  of  Aix  la  Chapelle,  in  1748,  finding  his  measures 
ill  supported,  he  threw  up  his  ofiice  in  disgust.  StUl 
his  mere  personal  influence  sufficed  to  embarrass  the 
intrigues  of  the  busy  priest  at  La  Presentation ;  and  a 
few  years  later,  when  the  public  exigency  demanded 
his  utmost  efforts,  he  resumed,  under  better  auspices, 
the  official  management  of  Indian  affairs. 

And  now,  when  the  blindest  could  see  that  between 
the  rival  claimants  to  the  soil  of  America  nothing 
was  left  but  the  arbitration  of  the  sword,  no  man 
friendly  to  the  cause  of  England  could  observe  without 
alarm  how  France  had  strengthened  herself  in  Indian 
alliances.  The  Iroquois,  it  is  true,  had  not  quite  gone 
over  to  her  side,  nor  had  the  Delawares  yet  forgotten 
their  ancient  league  with  William  Penn.  The  Miamis 
in  the  valley  of  the  Ohio  had  even  taken  umbrage  at 
the  conduct  of  the  French,  and  betrayed  a  leaning  to 
the  side  of  England,  while  several  tribes  of  the  south 
showed  a  similar  disposition.  But,  with  few  and  slight 
exceptions,  the  numerous  tribes  of  the  Great  Lakes  and 


1  Allen,  Am.  Biog.  Diet.,  and  au-  Papers  relating  to  Sir  W.  Johnson, 

thorities  there  referred  to.    Camp-  See  Doc.  Hist  N.  Y.  II.    MS.  Papers 

bell,  Annals  of  Tryon  County,  ap-  of  Sir  W.  Johnson,  etc.,  etc. 
pendtx.    Sabine,  Am.  Loyalists,  398. 


■m^ 


84 


TIDE  FItENCH,  ENGLISH,  AND  INDLVNS.      [Ckap.  UI. 


the  Mississippi,  besides  a  host  of  domiciliated  savages 
in  Canada  itself,  stood  ready  at  tlie  bidding  of  France 
to  grind  their  tomahawks  and  turn  loose  their  ravenous 
war-pai-ties ;  while  the  British  colonists  had  too  much 
reason  to  fear  that  even  those  tribes  who  seemed  most 
friendly  to  their  cause,  and  who  formed  the  sole  bar- 
rier of  their  unprotected  borders,  might,  at  the  first 
sound  of  the  war-whoop,  be  found  in  arms  against 
them. 


fe 


v-*".'. 


<^: 


CHAPTER    IV. 


COLLISION  OP  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES. 


The  people  of  the  northern  English  colonies  had 
learned  to  regard  their  Canadian  neighbors  with  the 
bitterest  enmity.  With  them,  the  very  name  of  Canada 
called  up  horrible  recollections  and  ghastly  images; 
the  midnight  massacre  of  Schenectady,  and  the  deso- 
lation of  many  a  New  England  hamlet ;  blazing  dwell- 
ings and  reeking  scalps;  and  children  snatched  from 
their  mothers'  arms,  to  be  immured  in  convents  and 
trained  up  in  the  heresies  of  Popery.  To  the  sons 
of  the  Puritans,  their  enemy  was  doubly  odious.  They 
hated  him  as  a  Frenchman,  and  they  hated  him  as  a 
Papist.  Hitherto  he  had  waged  his  murderous  war- 
fare from  a  distance,  wasting  their  settlements  with 
rapid  onsets,  fierce  and  transient  as  a  summer  storm; 
but  now,  with  enterprising  audacity,  he  was  intrenching 
himself  on  their  very  borders.  The  English  hunter, 
in  the  lonely  wilderness  of  Vermont,  as  by  the  warm 
glow  of  sunset  he  piled  the  spruce  boughs  for  his 
woodland  bed,  started  as  a  deep,  low  sound  struck 
faintly  on  his  ear,  the  evening  gun  of  Fort  Frederic, 
booming  over  lake  and  forest.  The  erection  of  this 
fort,  better  known  among  the  Englisli  as  Crown  Point, 
was  a  piece  of  daring  encroachment  which  justly 
kindled  resentment  in  the  northern  colonies.  But  it 
was  not  here  that  the  immediate  occasion  of  a  final 


=1 

1 1 


86 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


rupture  was  to  arise.  By  an  article  of  the  treaty  of 
Utrecht,  confirmed  by  that  of  Aix  la  ChapeUe,  Aca- 
dia had  been  ceded  to  England ;  but  scarcely  was  the 
latter  treaty  signed,  when  debates  sprang  up  touch- 
ing the  limits  of  the  ceded  province.  Commissioners 
were  pamed  on  either  side  to  adjust  the  disputed 
boundary ;  but  the  claims  of  the  rival  powers  proved 
utterly  irreconcilable,  and  all  negotiation  was  fruitless.^ 
Meantime,  the  French  and  English  forces  in  Acadia 
began  to  assume  a  belligerent  attitude,  and  indulge 
their  ill  blood  in  mutual  aggression  and  reprisal.' 
But  while  this  game  was  played  on  the  coasts  of  the 
Atlantic,  interests  of  far  greater  moment  were  at  stake 
in  the  west. 

The  people  of  the  middle  colonies,  placed  by  theii^ 
local  position  beyond  reach  of  the  French,  had 
heard  with  great  composure  of  the  sufienngs  of  their 
New  England  brethren,  and  felt  little  concern  at  a 
danger  so  doubtful  and  remote.  There  were  those 
among  them,  however,  who,  with  greater  foresight,  had 
been  quick  to  perceive  the  ambitious  projects  of  the 
French;  and,  as  early  as  1716,  Spotswood,  governor 
of  Virginia,  had  urged  the  expediency  of  securing 
the  valley  of  the  Ohio  by  a  series  of  forts  and  set- 
tlements.^ His  proposal  was  coldly  listened  to,  and 
his  plan  fell  to  the  ground.  The  time  at  length  Was 
come  when  the  danger  was  approaching  too  near  to 
be  slighted  longer.  In  1748,  an  association,  called 
the  Ohio  Company,  was  formed,  with  the  view  of 
making  settlements  in  the  region  beyond  the  Alle- 


1  Gameau,  Book  VIII.  Chap.  III.  3  Smollett,  III.  370,  (Edinburgh, 

3  Holmes,  Annals,  II.  183.    Me-    1805.) 
moire  contenant  Le  Precis  des  Faits, 
Pieces  Justificatives,  Part  I.  '* 


". 


7  t 


r: 


^  ' 


Chap.  IV.] 


MISSION  OF  WASHINGTON. 


87 


./ 


.'S* 


ghanies ;  and  two  years  later,  Gist,  the  company's  sur- 
veyor, to  the  great  disgust  of  the  Indians,  carried 
chain  and  compass  down  the  Ohio  as  far  as  the  falls 
at  Louisville.^  But  so  dilatory  were  the  English,  that 
before  any  effectual  steps  were  taken,  their  agile  ene- 
mies appeared  upon  the  scene. 

In  the  spring  of  1753,  the  middle  provinces  were 
startled  at  the  tidings  that  French  troops  had  crossed 
Lake  Erie,  fortified  themselves  at  the  point  of  Presqu'- 
Isle,  and  pushed  forward  to  the  northern  branches 
of  the  Ohio.'  Upon  this.  Governor  Dinwiddie,  of 
Virginia,  resolved  to  despatch  a  message  requiring 
their  removal  from  territories  which  he  claimed  as 
belonging  to  the  British  crown;  and  looking  about 
him  for  the  person  best  qualified  to  act  as  messenger, 
he  made  choice  of  George  Washington,  a  young  man 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  adjutant  general  of  the  Vir- 
ginian mUitia.  ! 

Washington  departed  on  his  mission,  crossed  the 
mountains,  descended  to  the  bleak  and  leafless  valley 
of  the  Ohio,  and  thence  continued  his  journey  up  the 
banks  of  the  Alleghany  imtil  the  fourth  of  Decem- 
ber. On  that  day  he  reached  Venango,  an  Indian 
town  on  the  Alleghany,  at  the  mouth  of  French  Creek. 
Here  was  the  advanced  post  of  the  French,  and  here, 
among  the  Indian  log-cabins  and  huts  of  bark,  he  saw 
their  flag  flying  above  the  house  of  an  English  trader, 
whom  the  military  intruders  had  imceremoniously 
ejected.  They  gave  the  young  envoy  a  hospitable  re- 
ception,^ and  referred  him  to  the  commanding  ofiicer, 

1  Sparks,  Life  and  Writings  of  tains  documents  relating  to  this  period 

Washington,  II.  478.    Gist's  Journal,  which  are  not  to  be  found  elsewhere. 

1750.  3  «  He  invited  us  to  sup  with  them, 

3  Olden  Time,  II.  9, 10.    This  ex-  and  treated  us  with  the  greatest  com- 

cellent  antiquarian  publication  con-  plaisance.    The  wine,  as  they  dosed 


kl 


(^ 


'^     88 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL 


[Chap.  IV. 


whose  head-quarters  were  at  Le  Boeuf,  a  fort  which 
they  had  just  erected  on  French  Creek,  some  distance 
above  Venango.  Thither  Washington  repaired,  and 
on  his  arrival  was  received  with  stately  courtesy  by 
the  officer  Legardeur  de  St.  Pierre,  whom  he  describes 
as  an  elderly  gentleman  of  very  soldier-like  appear- 
ance. To  the  message  of  Dinwiddle,  St.  Pierre  replied 
that  he  would  forward  it  to  the  governor  general  of 
Canada;  but  that,  in  the  mean  time,  his  orders  were 
to  hold  possession  of  the  country,  and  this  he  should 
do  to  the  best  of  his  ability.  With  this  answer  Wash- 
ington, through  all  the  rigors  of  the  midwinter  forest, 
retraced  his  steps,  with  one  attendant,  to  the  English 
borders. 

With  the  first  opening  of  spring,  a  newly-raised 
company  of  Virginian  backwoodsmen,  under  Captain 
Trent,  hastened  across  the  mountains,  and  began  to 
build  a  fort  at  the  confluence  of  the  Monongahela 
and  Alleghany,  where  Pittsburg  now  stands;  when 
suddenly  they  found  themselves  invested  by  a  host 
of  French  and  Indians,  who,  with  sixty  bateaux 
and  three  hundred  canoes,  had  descended  from  Le 
Boeuf  and  Venango.^  The  English  were  ordered  to 
evacuate  the  spot;  and,  being  quite  unable  to  resist, 
they  obeyed  the  summons,  and  withdrew  in  great  dis- 
comfiture towards  Virginia.     Meanwhile  Washington, 


themselves  pretty  plentifully  witli  it, 
soon  banished  the  restraint  which  at 
firdt  appeared  in  their  conversation, 
and  gave  a  license  to  their  tongues 
to  reveal  their  sentiments  more  freely. 
They  told  me,  that  it  was  their  abso- 
lute design  to  take  possession  of  the 
Ohio,  and  by  G — d  they  would  do  it; 
for  that,  although  they  were  sensible 
the  English  could  raise  two  men  for 
their  one,  yet  they  knew  their  mo- 
tions were  too  slow  and  dilatory  to 


Prevent  any  undertaking  of  theirs, 
'hey  pretend  to  have  an  undoubted 
right  to  the  river  from  a  discovery 
made  by  one  La  Salle,  sixty  years 
ago ;  and  the  rise  of  this  expedition 
is,  to  prevent  our  settling  on  tlie  river 
or  waters  of  it,  as  they  heard  of  some 
families  moving  out  in  order  there- 
to."—  Washington,  Journal. 

1  Sparks,  Life  and  Writings  of 
Washington,  II.  6. 


Chap.  IV] 


DEATH  OP  JUMONVILLE. 


m 


with  another  party  of  backwoodsmen,  was  advancing 
from  the  borders ;  and  hearing  of  Trent's  disaster,  he 
resolved  to  fortify  himself  on  the  Monongahela,  and 
hold  his  ground,  if  possible,  until  fresh  troops  could 
arrive  to  support  him.  The  French  sent  out  a  scout- 
ing party  under  M.  Jumonville,  with  the  design,  prob- 
ably, of  watching  his  movements ;  but,  on  a  dark  and 
stormy  night,  Washington  surprised  them,  as  they  lay 
lurking  in  a  rocky  glen  not  far  from  his  camp,  killed 
the  officer,  and  captured  the  whole  detachment.^  Learn- 
ing that  the  French,  enraged  by  this  reverse,  were  about 
to  attack  him  in  great  force,  he  thought  it  prudent  to 
fall  back,  and  retired  accordingly  to  a  spot  called  the 
Great  Meadows,  where  he  had  before  thrown  up  a 
slight  intrenchment.  Here  he  found  himself  furiously 
assailed  by  nine  hundred  French  and  Indians,  com- 
manded by  a  brother  of  the  slain  Jumonville.  From 
eleven  in  the  morning  till  eight  at  night,  the  back- 
woodsmen, who  were  half  famished  from  the  failure 
of  their  stores,  maintained  a  stubborn  defence,  some 
fighting  within  the  intrenchment,  and  some  on  the 
plain  without.  In  the  evening,  the  French  sounded  a 
parley,  and  offered  terms.  They  were  accepted,  and  on 
the  following  day  Washington  and  his  men  retired 
across  the  mountains,  and  the  disputed  territory  re- 
mained in  the  hands  of  the  French.*^ 

While  the  rival  nations  were  beginning  to  quarrel 
for  a  prize  which  belonged  to  neither  of  them,  the 
unhappy  Indians  saw,  with  alarm  and  amazement,  their 


4 


1 


.  ,1 
i  ^ 


#1 


1  Sparks,  II.  447.  The  conduct 
of  Washington  in  this  affair  has  been 
misrepresented,  but  the  passage  re- 
ferred to  contains  a  full  justification. 

2  For  the  French  account  of  these 
operations,  see  Memoire  contenant 

12 


Le  Precis  des  Faits.  This  volume, 
an  official  publication  of  the  French 
court,  contains  numerous  documents, 
among  which  are  the  papers  of  the 
unfortunate  Braddock,  lefl  on  the 
field  of  battle  by  his  defeated  army. 

H* 


W   .1 


i 


90 


COLLISION  OF  THE  BIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


lands  becoming  a  bone  of  contention  between  rapacious 
strangers.  The  first  appearance  of  the  French  on  the 
Ohio  excited  the  wildest  fears  in  the  tribes  of  that 
quarter,  among  whom  were  those  who,  disgusted  by 
the  encroachments  of  the  Pennsylvanians,  had  fled  to 
these  remote  retreats  to  escape  the  intrusions  of  the 
white  men.  Scarcely  was  their  fancied  asylimi  gained, 
when  they  saw  themselves  invaded  by  a  host  of  armed 
men  from  Canada.  Thus  placed  between  two  fires, 
they  knew  not  which  way  to  turn.  There  was  no 
imion  in  their  counsels,  and  they  seemed  like  a  mob 
of  bewildered  children.  Their  native  jealousy  was 
roused  to  its  utmost  pitch.  Many  of  them  thought 
that  the  two  white  nations  had  conspired  to  destroy 
them,  and  then  divide  their  lands.  "You  and  the 
French,"  said  one  of  them,  a  few  years  afterwards,  to 
an  English  emissary,  "  are  like  the  two  edges  of  a  pair 
of  shears,  and  we  are  the  cloth  which  is  cut  to  pieces 
between  them."  * 

The  French  labored  hard  to  conciliate  them,  plying 
them  with  gifts  and  flatteries,'*  and  proclaiming  them- 
selves their  champions  against  the  English.  At  first, 
these  arts  seemed  in  vain,  but  their  effect  soon  began 
to  declare  itself;  and  this  effect  was  greatly  increased 
by  a  singular  piece  of  infatuation  on  the  part  of  the 
proprietors  of  Pennsylvania.    During  the  summer  of 


1  First  Journal  of  C.  F.  Post. 

3  Letters  of  Robert  Stobo,  an  Eng- 
lish hostage  at  Fort  du  Q,uesne. 

"Shaniokin  Daniel,  who  came 
with  me,  went  over  to  the  fort 
[du  Quesne]  by  himself,  and  coun- 
selled with  the  governor,  who  pre- 
sented him  with  a  laced  coat  and 
hat,  a  blanket,  shirts,  ribbons,  a  new 
gun,  powder,  lead,  &.c.  When  he 
returned,  he  was  quite  changed,  and 


said,  *  See  here,  you  fools,  what  the 
French  have  given  me.  I  was  in 
Philadelphia,  and  never  received  a 
farthing;'  and  (directing  himself  to 
me)  said, '  The  English  are  fools,  and 
so  are  you.'  "  —  Post,  Hrst  Journal. 
Washington,  while  at  Fort  Le 
Boeuf,  was  much  annoved  by  the 
conduct  of  the  French,  who  did 
their  utmost  to  seduce  his  Indian 
escort  by  bribes  and  promises. 


^m 


Chap.  IV.J        TRENCH  AND  ENGLISH  DIPLOMACY. 


91 


mr 


1754,  delegates  of  the  several  provinces  met  at  Albany, 
in  order  to  concert  measures  of  defence  in  the  war 
which  now  seemed  inevitable.  It  was  at  this  meeting 
that  the  memorable  plan  of  a  union  of  the  colonies 
was  brought  upon  the  carpet;  a  plan,  the  fate  of 
which  was  curious  and  significant,  for  the  crown 
rejected  it  as  giving  too  much  power  to  the  people, 
and  the  people  as  giving  too  much  power  to  the 
crown.^  A  council  was  also  held  with  the  Iroquois, 
and  though  they  were  found  but  lukewarm  in  their 
attachment  to  the  English,  a  treaty  of  friendship  and 
alliance  was  concluded  with  their  deputies.**  It  would 
have  been  well  if  the  matter  had  ended  here;  but, 
with  ill-timed  rapacity,  the  proprietary  agents  of  Penn- 
sylvania took  advantage  of  this  great  assemblage  of 
sachems  to  procure  from  them  the  grant  of  extensive 
tracts,  including  the  lands  inhabited  by  the  very  tribes 
whom  the  French  were  at  that  moment  striving  to 
seduce.'  When  they  heard  that,  without  their  consent, 
their  conquerors  and  tyrants,  the  Iroquois,  had  sold  the 
soil  from  beneath  their  feet,  their  indignation  was 
extreme;  and,  convinced  that  there  was  no  limit  to 
English  encroachment,  many  of  them  from  that  hour 
became  fast  allies  of  the  French. 

The  courts  of  London  and  Versailles  still  maintained 
a  diplomatic  intercourse,  both  protesting  their  earnest 
wish  that  their  conflicting  claims  might  be  adjusted 
by  friendly  negotiation ;  but  while  each  disclaimed  the 


'■if. 


'%' 


r< 


.^■i 


!  1 


I  1  ■»♦ 

m 


1  Trumbull,  Hist  Conn.  II.  355. 
Holmes,  Annals,  II.  201. 

^  At  this  council  an  Iroquois  sa- 
chem upbraided  tho  English,  with 
great  boldness,  for  their  neglect  of 
me  Indians,  their  invasion  of  their 
lands,  and  their  dilatory  conduct  with 


regard  to  the  French,  who,  as  the 
speaker  averred,  had  behaved  like 
men  and  warriors.  —  Mnvtea  of  Con- 
ferences at  Mbany^  1754. 

3  Causes  of  the  Alienation  of 
the  Delaware  and  Shawanoe  Indians 
from  the  British  Interest,  77.    -  .  v 


'It 


I 


92 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      (Chap.  IV. 


intention  of  hostility,  both  were  hastening  to  prepare 
for  war.  Early  in  1755,  an  English  fleet  sailed  from 
Cork,  having  on  board  two  regiments  destined  for 
Virginia,  and  commanded  by  General  Braddock;  and 
soon  after,  a  French  rleet  put  to  sea  from  the  port  of 
Brest,  freighted  with  munitions  of  war  and  a  strong 
body  of  troops  under  Baron  Dieskau,  an  officer  who 
had  distinguished  himself  in  the  campaigns  of  Marshal 
Saxe.  The  English  fleet  gained  its  destination,  and 
landed  its  troops  in  safety.  T^u  F:nich  were  less  for- 
tunate. Two  of  their  shi^  3,  Iho  T}  and  the  Alcide, 
became  involved  in  the  f 'f»p  of  the  banks  of  New- 
foundland ;  and  whev,  'he  weat iier  cleared,  they  found 
themselves  under  t".  j^ans  of  a  superior  British  force, 
belonging  to  the  squadron  of  Admiral  Boscawen,  sent 
out  for  the  express  purpose  of  intercepting  them. 
"Are  we  at  peace  or  war?"  demanded  the  French 
commander.  A  broadside  from  the  Englishman  soon 
solved  his  doubts,  and,  after  a  stout  resistance,  the 
French  struck  their  colors.*  News  of  the  capture 
caused  great  excitement  in  England,  but  the  conduct 
of  the  aggressors  was  generally  approved  of;  and 
under  pretence  that  the  French  had  begun  the  war  by 
their  alleged  encroachments  in  America,  orders  were 
issued  for  a  general  attack  upon  their  marine.  So 
successful  were  the  British  cruisers,  that,  before  the 
end  of  the  yeai',  thi-ee  hundred  French  vessels,  and 
nearly  eight  thousand  sailors,  were  captured  and 
brought  into  port.'    The  French,  unable  tci  retort  in 


/^  C<\-!\\n\       bSl.     Gt^i^M  Mag.  acta   of   piracy;    and    some    neu- 

X.'.. '/ .  'ioO.  tral  powers  oi  Europe  seemed   to 

3  Smollett,  IIL  436.  consider  them  in  the  same  point  of 

"The  French  inveighed  against  view.    It  was  certainly  high  time  to 

the  capture   of  their  ships,  before  check  the  insolence  of  the  French 

any  declaration  of  war,  as  flagrant  by  force  of  arms }  and  surely  this 


f  > 


CaAr.iy.]      THE  WAB  IN  EUBOPE  AND  AMERICA.      .  i       93 

kind,  raised  an  outcry  of  indignation,  and  Mirepoix, 
their  ambassador,  withdrew  from  the  court  of  London. 

Tims  began  that  memorable  war  which,  kindling 
among  tlu^  wild  forests  of  America,  scattered  its  fires 
o\.  the  kingdoms  of  Europe,  and  the  sultry  empire 
of  the  Gieflt  Mogul;  the  war  made  glorious  by  the 
1  eroic  death  of  Wolfe,  the  ^ictories  of  Frederic,  and 
the  marvellous  exploits  of  Clive ;  the  \^  which  con- 
trolled the  destinies  of  America,  and  was  rst  in  the 
chain  of  events  which  led  on  to  her  revolu/  n,  with 
all  its  vast  and  undeveloped  consequences.  >n  the 
old  battle-ground  of  Europe,  the  strugglf  bo.  the 
same  familiar  features  of  violence  and  h  Tor  which 
had  marked  the  strife  of  former  g<  leratit  ^  —  tields 
ploughed  by  the  cannon  ball,  and  walls  shattirei  by 
the  exploding  mine  sacked  towns  and  blazi'  o;  sub- 
urbs, the  lamentatic  as  of  women,  and  the  L  use  of 
a  maddened  soldiery.  But  in  America,  war  umfd 
a  new  and  striking  aspect.  A  wilderness  was  s  sub- 
lime arena.  Army  m  >t  army  under  the  shad'  =  of 
primeval  woods;  their  cannon  resouitded  over  istes 
unknown  to  civilized  man.  And  before  the  i  stile 
powers  could  join  in  battle,  endless  forests  mu-  be 
traversed,  and  morasses  passed,  and  every  wheif  the 
axe  of  the  pioneer  must  hew  a  path  for  the  bayonet 
of  the  soldier. 

Before  the  declaration  of  war,  and  before  the  break- 
ing off  of  negotiations  be -ween  the  courts  of  France 
and  England,  the  English  ministry  formed  the  plan 
of  assailing   the   French  in  America  on  all   sides  at 

might  have  been  as  effectually  and  neighbors,  and  fixed  the  imputation 

expeditiously  exerted  under  the  usual  of  fraud  and  freebooting  on  the  be- 

sanction  of  a  formal  declaration,  the  ginning  of  the  war."  —  Smollett,  III. 

omission  of  which  exposed  the  ad-  4SI.     See  also  Mahon,  Hist.  Eng- 

ministration  to  the  censure  of  our  h  iid,  IV.  73. 


f 


i\ 


94 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      IChap.  I\  , 


fl 


once,  and  repelling  them,  by  one  bold  push,  from  all 
their  encroachments.'  A  provincial  army  was  to  ad- 
vance upon  Acadia,  a  second  was  to  attack  Crown 
Point,  and  a  third  Niagara ;  while  the  two  regiments 
which  had  lately  arrived  in  Virginia  under  General 
Braddock,  aided  by  a  strong  body  of  provincials,  were 
to  dislodge  the  French  from  their^newly-built  fort  of 
Du  Quesne.  To  Braddock  was  assigned  the  chief 
command  of  all  the  British  forces  in  America ;  and  a 
person  worse  fitted  for  the  office  could  scarcely  have 
been  found.  His  experience  had  been  ample,  and  none 
could  doubt  his  courage ;  but  he  was  profligate,  arro- 
gant, perverse,  and  a  bigot  to  military  rules.^  On  his 
first  arrival  in  Virginia,  he  called  together  the  gov- 
ernors of  the  several  provinces,  in  order  to  explain  his 
instructions  and  adjust  the  details  of  the  projected 
operations.  These  arrangements  complete,  Braddock 
advanced  to  the  borders  of  Virginia,  and  formed  his 
camp  at  Fort  Cumberland,  where   he  spent  several 


1  Instructions  of  General  Brad- 
dock. Sec  Precis  dcs  Faits,  160, 
168. 

2  The  following  is  Horace  Wa!- 
pole's  testimony,  and  writers  of  bet- 
ter authority  have  expressed  them- 
selves, with  less  liveliness  and 
piquancy,  to  the  same  effect :  — 

"  Braddock  is  a  very  Iroquois  in  dis- 
position. He  had  a  sister,  who,  hav- 
ing gamed  away  all  her  little  fortune 
at  Bath,  hanged  herself  with  a  truly 
English  deliberation,  leaving  only  a 
note  upon  the  table  with  those  lines, 
*To  die  is  landing  on  some  silent 
shore,'  &c.  When  Braddock  was 
told  of  it,  he  only  said,  '  Poor  Fanny ! 
I  always  thought  she  would  play  till 
she  would  be  forced  to  tuck  herself 
vp:  " 

Hero  follows  a  curious  anecdote 
of  Braddock'a  meanness  and  profli- 
gacy, WiilCu   X   GiiiiL. 


more  to  his  credit  "He  once  had 
a  duel  with  Colonel  Gumley,  Lady 
Bath's  brother,  who  had  been  his 
great  friend.  As  they  were  going  to 
engage,  Gumley,  who  had  good  nu- 
mor  and  wit,  (Braddock  had  the  lat- 
ter,) said, '  Braddock,  you  are  a  poor 
dog!  Here,  take  my  purse.  If  you 
kill  me,  you  will  be  forced  to  run 
away,  and  then  you  will  not  have  a 
shilling  to  support  ]^ou.'  Braddock 
refused  the  purse,  insisted  on  the 
duel,  was  disarmed,  and  would  not 
even  ask  his  life.  However,  with  all 
his  brutality,  he  has  lately  been  gov- 
ernor of  Gibraltar,  where  he  made 
himself  adored,  and  where  scarce 
any  governor  was  endured  before." 
—  LdUrs  to  Sir  H.  Mann,  CCLXV. 
CCLXVi. 

Washington's    opinion    of   Brad- 
dock  may    be   gatliercd    from   his 


Chap.  IV.] 


MARCH  OP  BRADDOCK. 


95 


weeks  in  training  the  raw  backwoodsmen,  who  joined 
him,  into  such  discipline  as  they  seemed  capable  of; 
in  collecting  horses  and  wagons,  which  could  only  be 
had  with  the  utmost  difficulty ;  in  railing  at  the  con- 
tractors, who  scandalously  cheated  him;  and  in  vent- 
ing his  spleen  by  copious  abuse  of  the  country  and 
the  people.  All  at  length  was  ready,  and  early  in 
June,  1755,  the  army  left  civilization  behind,  and 
struck  into  the  broad  wUdemess  as  a  squadron  puts 
out  to  sea. 

It  was  no  easy  task  to  force  their  way  over  that 
rugged  ground,  covered  with  an  unbroken  growth  of 
forest;  and  the  difficulty  was  increased  by  the  need- 
less load  of  baggage  which  encumbered  their  march. 
The  crash  of  falling  trees  resounded  in  the  front, 
where  a  hundred  axemen  labored,  with  ceaseless  toil, 
to  hew  a  passage  for  the  army.^  The  horses  strained 
their  utmost  strength  to  drag  the  ponderous  wagons 
over  roots  and  stumps,  through  gullies  and  quagmires ; 
and  the  regular  troops  were  daunted  by  the  depth 
and  gloom  of  the  forest  which  hedged  them  in  on 
either  hand,  and  closed  its  leafy  arches  above  their 
heads.  So  tedious  was  their  progress,  that,  by  the 
advice  of  Washington,  twelve  hundred  chosen  men 
moved  on  in  advance  with  the  lighter  baggage  and 
artillery,  leaving  the  rest  of  the  army  to  follow,  by 
slower  stages,  with  the  heavy  wagons.  On  the  eighth 
of  July,  the  advanced  body  reached  the  Monongahela, 
at  a  point  not  far  distant  from  Fort  du  Quesne. 
The  rocky  and  impracticable  ground  on  the  eastern 
side  debarred  their  passage,  and  the  general  resolved 
to  cross  the  river  in  search  of  a  smoother  path,  and 


( 


I   If 


1  MS.  Diary  of  Uic  Expedition,  in  the  British  Museum. 


96 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


tli 


recross  it  a  few  miles  lower  down,  in  order  to  gain 
the  fort.  The  first  passage  was  easily  made,  and  the 
troops  moved,  in  glittering  array,  down  the  western 
margin  of  the  water,  rejoicing  that  their  goal  was 
well  nigh  reached,  and  the  hour  of  their  expected 
triumph  close  at  hand.  w^ti 

Scouts  and  Indian  runners  had  brought  the  tidings 
of  Braddock's  approach  to  the  French  at  Fort  du 
Quesne.  Their  dismay  was  great,  and  Contrecceur,  the 
commander,  thought  only  of  retreat;  when  Beaujeu,  a 
captain  in  the  garrison,  made  the  bold  proposal  of 
leading  out  a  party  of  French  and  Indians  to  waylay 
the  English  in  the  woods,  and  harass  or  interrupt 
their  march.  The  offer  was  accepted,  and  Beaujeu 
hastened  to  the  Iiyli-  i  camps. 

Around  the  fori,  and  beneath  the  adjacent  forest 
were  the  bark  lodges  of  savage  hordes,  whom  the 
French  had  mustered  from  far  and  near ;  Ojibwas  and 
Ottawas,  Hurons  and  Caughnawagas,  Afcenakis  and 
Delawares.  Beaujeu  called  the  warriors  together, 
flung  a  hatchet  on  the  ground  before  them,  and  in- 
vited them  to  follow  him  out  to  battle;  but  the 
boldest  stood  aghast  at  the  peril,  and  none  would  ac- 
cept the  challenge.  A  second  interview  took  place 
with  no  better  success;  but  the  Frenchman  was  re- 
solved to  carry  his  point.  "  I  am  determined  to  go," 
he  exclaimed.  "  What,  will  you  suffer  youi'  father  to 
go  alone  'i "  *  His  daring  spirit  proved  contagious. 
The  warriors  hesitated  no  longer;  and  when,  on  the 
morning  of  the   ninth   of  July,  a  scout  ran  in  with 


'  Sparks,  Life  and  Writincs  of  scripts,  which  throw  much  light  on 

Washington,  II.  47a    I  am  indebted  the  incidents  of  the  battle.    These 

to  the  kindness  of  President  Sparks  manuscripts  are  alluded  to  in  the 

for  copies  of  several  French  manu-  Life  and  V/ritings  of  "T^aahington. 


Chap.  IV.J 


THE  AMBUSCADE. 


97 


the  news  that  the  English  army  was  but  a  few  miles 
distant,  the  Indian  camps  were  at  once  astir  with  the 
turmoil  of  preparation.  Chiefs  harangued  their  yell- 
ing followers,  braves  bedaubed  themselves  with  war- 
paint, smeared  themselves  with  grease,  hung  feathers 
in  their  scalp-locks,  and  whooped  and  stamped  till 
they  had  wrought  themselves  into  a  delirium  of 
valor.  ;-''^  ■  i-<* urM-. ..ii^jr^^  ■«;?■  ■  '^i-- ^  ■ 

That  morning,  James  Smith,  an  English  prisoner 
recently  captured  on  the  frontier  of  Pennsylvania, 
stood  on  the  rampart,  and  saw  the  half-frenzied  mul- 
titude thronging  about  the  gateway,  where  kegs  of 
bullets  and  gunpowder  were  broken  open,  that  each 
might  help  himself  at  will.J^  Then  band  after  band 
hastened  away  towards  the  forest,  followed  and  sup- 
ported by  nearly  two  hundred  and  fifty  French  and 
Canadians,  commanded  by  Beaujeu.  There  were  the 
Ottawas,  led  on,  it  is  said,  by  the  remarkable  man 
whose  name  stands  on  the  title-page  of  this  history; 
there  were  the  Hurons  of  Lorette  under  their  chief, 
whom  the  French  called  Athanase,**  and  many  more, 
all  keen  as  hounds  on  the  scent  of  blood.  At  about 
nine  miles  from  the  fort,  they  reached  a  spot  where 
the  narrow  road  descended  to  the  river  through  deep 
and  gloomy  woods,  and  where  two  ravines,  concealed 
by  trees  and  bushes,  seemed  formed  by  nature  for  an 
ambuscade.  Here  the  warriors  ensconced  themselves, 
and,  levelling  their  guns  over  the  edge,  lay  in  fierce 


-.;[ 

\ 

^ 

rgt 

\n 

■  u; 

' 

lr« 

■nr4 

,:..;;»'^ 

&\ 

i. 

1. 

f^Pd 

?^^ 
f 

.M 

I 

'     ! 

r 

1 

f* 

i 

t 

t 

f 

•m 

,j 

t 

if     a^\ 


1  Smith's  Narrative.  This  interest- 
ing account  has  been  several  times 
published.  It  may  be  found  in  Drake's 
Tragedies  of  the  Wilderness. 

3  "  Went  to  Lorette,  an  Indian  vil- 
lage about  eight  miles  from  Quebec. 

them  sing  psalms  tolerably  well  —  a 

13 


dance.  Got  well  acquainted  with 
Athanase,  who  was  commander  of  the 
Indians  who  defeated  General  Brad- 
dock,  in  1755 — a  very  sensible  fel- 
low."—  MS.  Journal  of  an  English 
Gmlletnan  on  a  Tour  tmvugh  Canada, 


lit    X  f  \MI» 


98 


COLLISION  OF  THE  BIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


expectation,  listening  to  the  advancing  drums  of  the 
English  army. 

It  was  past  noon  of  a  day  brightened  with  the  clear 
sunlight  of  an  American  midsummer,  when  the  forces 
of  Braddock  began,  for  a  second  time,  to  cross  the 
Monongahela,  at  the  fording-place,  which  to  this  day 
bears  the  name  of  their  ill-fated  leader.  The  scarlet 
columns  of  the  British  regulars  complete  in  martial 
appointment,  the  rude  backwoodsmen  with  shouldered 
rifles,  the  trains  of  artillery  and  the  white-topped 
wagons,  moved  on  in  long  procession  through  the 
broad  and  shallow  current,  and  slowly  mounted  the 
opposing  bank.^  Men  were  there  whose  names  have 
become  historic;  Gage,  who,  twenty  years  later,  saw 
his  routed  battalions  recoil  in  disorder  from  before 
the  breastwork  on  Bunker  Hill;  Gates,  the  future 
conqueror  of  Burgoync ;  and  one  destined  to  far  loftier 
fame,  George  Washington,  a  boy  in  years,  a  man  in 
calm  thought  and  self-ruling  wisdom. 

With  steady  and  well-ordered  march,  the  troops 
advanced  into  the  great  labyrinth  of  woods  which 
shadowed  the  eastern  borders  of  the  river.  Bank 
after  rank  vanished  from  sight.  The  forest  swallowed 
them  up,  and  the  silence  of  the  wilderness  sank  down 
once  more  on  the  shores  and  waters  of  the  Monon- 
gahela. 

Several  guides  and  six  light  horsemen  led  the  way; 
a  body  of  grenadiers  was  close  behind,  and  the  army 


'  "My  feelings  were  heightened 
by  the  warm  ana  glowing  narration 
of  that  day's  events,  by  Dr.  Walker, 
who  was  an  eye-witness.  He  pointed 
out  the  ford  where  the  army  crossed 
the  Monongahela,  (below  Turtle 
Creek,  800  yards.)  A  finer  sight  could 
not  have  been  beheld  —  the  shining 
barrels  of  the  muskets,  tlie  excellent 


order  of  the  men,  the  cleanliness  of 
their  appearance,  the  joy  depicted  on 
every  face  at  being  so  near  Fort  du 
Quesne  —  the  highest  object  of  their 
wishes.  The  music  reechoed  through 
the  hills.  How  brilliant  the  morn- 
ing —  how  melancholy  the  evening ! " 
— Letter  of  Judre  Yeaiu,  dated  Aveusl, 
177G.  Se'e  Haz.,  Pa.  Reg.  VI.  104. 


1=1" 


t\.  ; 


CiiAF.IV.]         f&I^J'  BRADDOCK'S  DEFEAT. 


99 


followed  in  such  order  as  the  rough  ground  would 
permit.^  Their  road  was  tunnelled  through  the  forest ; 
yet,  deaf  alike  to  the  voice  of  common  sense  and  to 
the  counsel  of  his  officers,  Braddock  had  neglected  to 
throw  out  scouts  in  advance,  and  pressed  forward 
in  blind  security  to  meet  his  fate.  Leaving  behind 
the  low  groimds  which  bordered  on  the  river,  the 
van  of  the  army  was  now  ascending  a  gently-sloping 
hill;  and  here,  well  hidden  by  the  thick  stnnding 
columns  of  the  forest,  by  mouldering  prostrate  trunks, 
by  matted  imdergrowth,  and  long  rank  grasses,  lay 
on  either  flank  the  two  fatal  ravines  where  the  In- 
dian allies  of  the  French  were  crouched  in  breathless 
ambuscade.  No  man  saw  the  danger,  when  sudden- 
ly a  discordant  cry  arose  in  front,  and  a  murderous 
fire  blazed  in  the  teeth  of  the  astonished  grenadiers. 
Instinctively  as  it  were,  the  survivors  returned  the 
volley,  and  returned  it  with  good  effect;  for  a  ran- 
dom shot  struck  down  the  brave  Beaujeu,  and  the 
courage  of  the  assailants  was  staggered  by  his  fall. 
Dumas,  second  in  command,  rallied  them  to  the  at- 
tack; and  while  he,  with  the  French  and  Canadians, 
made  good  the  pass  in  front,  the  Indians  opened  a 
deadly  fire  on  the  right  and  left  of  the  British  col- 
umns.'' In  a  few  moments,  all  was  confusion.  The 
advanced  guard  fell  back  on  the  main  body,  and 
every  trace  of  subordination  vanished.  The  fire  soon 
extended  along  the  whole  length  of  the  army, 
from  front  to  rear.  Scarce  an  enemy  could  be  seen, 
though  the  forest  resounded  with  their  yells ;  though 
every  bush  and  tree  was  alive  with  incessant  flashes ; 


/■ 


5 


m 


1  Plans  of  Braddock's  march,  in  the  Library  of  Harvard  College. 

o  a i„   TT    /tiro 


100 


COLLISION  OF  THE  BIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


though  the  lead  flew  like  a  hailstorm,  and  with  every 
moment  the  men  went  down  hy  scores.  The  regular 
troops  seemed  bereft  of  their  senses.  They  huddled 
together  in  the  road  like  flocks  of  sheep;  and  happy 
did  he  think  himself  who  could  wedge  his  way  into  the 
midst  of  the  crowd,  and  place  a  barrier  of  human  flesh 
between  his  life  and  the  shot  of  the  ambushed  marks- 
men. Many  were  seen  eagerly  loading  their  muskets, 
and  then  firing  them  into  the  air,  or  shooting  their  own 
comrades,  in  the  insanity  of  their  terror.  The  oflicers, 
for  the  most  part,  displayed  a  conspicuous  gallantry; 
but  threats  and  commands  were  wasted  alike  on 
the  panic-stricken  multitude.  It  is  said  that  at  the 
outset  Braddock  showed  signs  of  fear;  but  he  soon 
recovered  his  wonted  intrepidity.  Five  horses  were 
shot  under  him,  and  five  times  he  mounted  afresh.' 
He  stormed  and  shouted,  and,  while  the  Virginians 
were  fighting  to  good  purpose,  each  man  behind  a  tree, 
like  the  Indians  themselves,  he  ordered  them  with  fu- 
rious menace  to  form  in  platoons,  where  the  fire  of  the 
enemy  mowed  them  down  like  grass.  At  length,  a 
mortal  shot  silenced  him,  and  two  provincials  bore 
him  off  the  field.  Washington  rode  through  the  tu- 
mult calm  and  undaunted.  Two  horses  were  killed 
under  him,  and  four  bullets  pierced  his  clothes;''  but 
his  hour  was  not  come,  and  he  escaped  without  a 
wound.  Gates  was  shot  through  the  body,  and  Gage 
also  was  severely  wounded.  Of  eighty-six  oflicers, 
only  twenty-three  remained  unhurt;  and  of  twelve 
hundred  soldiers  who  crossed  the  Monongahela,  more 
than  seven  hundred  were  killed  and  wounded.     None 


(A 


1  Letter — Captain  Orme,  his  aide-de-camp,  to  — — ,  July  18. 


*i*i»ii*ii  i<iit-uii  iiai^^t'ii 


Chap.  IV.]     BESULTS  OF  BRADDOCK'S  DEFEAT. 


101 


suffered  more  severely  than  the  Virgmians,  who  had 
displayed  throughout  a  degree  of  courage  and  steadi- 
ness which  put  the  cowardice  of  the  regulars  to 
shame.  The  havoc  among  them  was  terrible,  for  of 
their  whole  number  scarcely  one  fifth  left  the  field 
alive.* 

The  slaughter  lasted  three  hours;  when,  at  length, 
the  survivors,  as  if  impelled  by  a  general  impulse, 
rushed  tumultuously  from  the  place  of  carnage,  and 
with  dastardly  precipitation  fled  across  the  Monon- 
gahela.  The  enemy  did  not  pursue  beyond  the  river, 
flocking  back  to  the  field  to  collect  the  plunder,  and 
gather  a  rich  harvest  of  scalps.  The  routed  troops 
pursued  their  flight  until  they  met  the  rear  division  of 
the  army  under  Colonel  Dunbar ;  and  even  then  their, 
senseless  terrors  did  not  abate.  Dunbar's  soldiers 
caught  the  infection.  Cannon,  baggage,  and  wagons 
were  destroyed,  and  all  fled  together,  eager  to  escape 
from  the  shadows  of  those  awful  woods,  whose  hor- 
rors haunted  their  imagination.  They  passed  the  de- 
fenceless settlements  of  the  border,  and  hurried  on  to 
Philadelphia,  leaving  the  unhappy  people  to  defend 
themselves  as  they  might  against  the  tomahawk  and 
scalping-knife. 

The  calamities  of  this  disgraceful  overthrow  did  not 
cease  with  the  loss  of  a  few  hundred  soldiers  on  the 


ml 


1  "  The  Virginia  troops  showed  a 
good  deal  of  bravery,  and  were  nearly 
all  killed ;  for  I  believe,  out  of  three 
companies  that  were  there,  scarcely 
tliirty  men  are  left  alive.  Captain 
Peyrouny,  and  all  his  officers,  down 
to  a  corporal,  were  killed.  Captain 
Poison  had  nearly  as  hard  a  fate,  for 
only  one  of  his  was  left.  In  short,  the 
dastardly  behavior  of  those  they  call 
regulars  exposed  all  others,  that  were 


inclined  to  do  their  duty,  to  almost 
certain  death ;  and  at  last,  in  despite 
of  all  the  efforts  of  the  officers  to  the 
contrary,  they  ran,  as  sheep  pursued 
by  dogs,  and  it  was  impossible  to 
rally  tliem."  —  Writings  of  Waahing' 
ton,  II.  87. 

The  English  themselves  bore  re- 
luctant testimony  to  the  good  con- 
duct of  the  Virginians.  —  See  Entick, 
Hist.  Late  War,  147. 

I* 


102 


COLLISION  OF  THE  MVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


field  of  battle;  for  it  entailed  upon  the  provinces  all 
the  miseries  of  an  Indian  war.  Those  among  the 
tribes  who  had  thus  far  stood  neutral,  wavering  be- 
tween the  French  and  English,  now  hesitated  no 
longer.     Many   of  them  had  been   disgusted  by  the 

.  contemptuous  behavior  of  Braddock.  All  had  learned 
to  despise  the  courage  of  the  English,  and  to  regard 

•^  their  own  prowess  with  unbounded  complacency.  It 
is  not  in  Indian  nature  to  stand  quiet  in  the  midst 
of  war ;  and  the  defeat  of  Braddock  was  a  signal  for 
the  western  savages  to  snatch  their  tomahawks  and 
assail  the  English  settlements  with  one  accord;  to 
murder  and  pillage  with  ruthless  fury,  and  turn  the 
whole  frontier  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia  into  one 
wide  scene  of  woe  and  desolation. 

The  three  remaining  expeditions  which  the  British 
ministry  had  planned  for  that  year's  campaign  were 
attended  with  various  results.  Acadia  was  quickly 
reduced  by  the  forces  of  Colonel  Monkton ;  but  the 
glories  of  this  easy  victory  were  tarnished  by  an  act 
of  high-handed  oppression.  Seven  thousand  of  the 
unfortunate  people,  refusing  to  take  the  prescribed 
oath  of  allegiance,  were  seized  by  the  conquerors,  torn 
from  their  homes,  placed  on  shipboard  like  cargoes 
of  negro  slaves,  and  transported  to  the  British  prov- 
inces.' The  expedition  against  Niagara  was  a  total 
failure,  for  the  troops  did  not  even  reach  their  des- 
tination. The  movement  against  Crown  Point  met 
with  no  better  success  as  regards  the  main  object  of 
the  enterprise.  Owing  to  the  lateness  of  the  season, 
and  other  causes,  the  troops  proceeded  no  farther  tlian 
Lake   George;   but   the   attempt  was   marked  by  an 


1  Ilaliburton,  Hist  Nova  Scotia,  I.  Chap.  IV. 


Chap.  IV.] 


BATTLE  OF  LAKE  GEORGE. 


103 


achievement  of  arms,  which,  in  that  day  of  failures, 
was  greeted,  both  in  England  and  America,  as  a  signal 
victory. 

General,  afterwards  Sir  V/illiam  Johnson  had  been 
charged  with  the  conduct  of  the  Crown  Point  expedi- 
tion ;  and  his  little  army,  a  rude  assemblage  of  hunters 
and  farmers  from  New  York  and  New  England,  lay 
encamped  at  the  southern  extremity  of  Lake  George. 
Here,  while  they  languidly  pursued  their  preparations, 
their  active  enemy  anticipated  their  designs.     Baron 
Dieskau,  who,  with  a   strong   body  of   troops,  had 
reached   Quebec  in  the  squadron  which   sailed  from 
Brest  in  the  spring,  had  intended  to  take  forcible  pos- 
session of  the  fort  of  Oswego,  erected  upon  ground 
claimed  by  the  French  as  part  of  Canada.     Learning 
Johnson's   movements,  he   changed  his  plan,  crossed 
Lake  Champlain,   made  a   circuit  by  way  of  Wood 
Creek,  and  gained  the  rear  of  the  English  army,  with 
a  force  of  about  two  thousand  French  and  Indians. 
At  midnight,  on  the  seventh  of  September,  the  tidings 
rea«^hpd  Johnson  that  the  army  of  the  French  baron 
was      t  a  few  miles  distant  from  his  camp.     A  council 
of  war  was  called,  and  the  strange  resolution  formed 
of  detaching  a  thousand  men  to  meet  the  enemy.     "  If 
they  are  to  be  killed,"  said  Hendrick,  the   MohaAvk 
chief,  "  they  are  too  many ;  if  they  are  to  fight,  they 
are  too  few."     His  remonstrance  was  unheeded,  and 
the  brave  old  savage,  unable,  from  age  and  corpulence, 
to  fight  on  foot,  mounted  his  horse,  and  joined  the 
English  detachment  with  two  hundred  of  his  Avarriors. 
At  sunrise,  the  party  defiled  from  the  camp,  and,  enter- 
ing  the  forest,  disappeared   from    the  eyes   of   their 
comrades. 

Those  who  remained  behind  labored  with  all   the 


^1 


104 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


energy  of  alarm  to  fortify  their  unprotected  camp. 
An  hour  elapsed,  when  from  the  distance  was  heard  a 
sudden  explosion  of  musketry.  The  excited  soldiers 
suspended  their  work  to  listen.  A  rattling  fire  suc- 
ceeded, deadened  among  the  woods,  but  growing  louder 
and  nearer,  till  none  could  doubt  that  their  comrades 
had  met  the  French,  and  were  defeated. 

This  was  indeed  the  case.  Marching  through  thick 
woods,  by  the  narrow  and  newly-cut  road  which  led 
along  the  valley  stretching  southward  from  Lake 
George,  Williams,  the  English  commander,  had  led  his 
men  full  into  an  ambuscade,  where  all  Dieskau's  ai-my 
lay  in  wait  to  receive  them.  From  the  woods  on  both 
sides  rose  nn  appalling  shout,  foUowetl  by  a  storm  of 
bidlets.  AVilliams  was  soon  shot  down;  Hendrick 
shared  his  fate ;  many  officers  fell,  and  the  road  was 
strewn  with  dead  and  wounded  soldiers.  The  English 
gave  way  at  once.  Had  they  been  regular  troops,  the 
result  would  have  been  most  fatal ;  but  every  man  was 
a  woodsman  and  a  hunter.  Some  retired  in  bodies 
along  the  road ;  but  the  greater  part  spread  themselves 
through  the  forest,  opposing  a  wide  front  to  the  enemy, 
and  fighting  stubbornly  as  they  retreated.  They  shot 
back  at  the  French  from  behind  every  tree  or  bush  that 
coidd  afford  a  cover.  The  Canadians  and  Indians 
pressed  tliem  closely,  darting,  with  shrill  cries,  from 
tree  to  tree,  while  Dieskau's  regulars,  with  steadier 
advance,  bore  all  before  them.  Far  and  wide  through 
the  forest  rang  shout,  and  shriek,  and  Indian  whoop, 
mingled  witli  the  deadly  rattle  of  guns.  Retreating 
and  pursuing,  the  combatants  passed  northward  towards 
the  English  camp,  leaving  the  groimd  behind  them 
stre^^^l  witli  dead  and  dying. 

A  fresh  detachment  from  the  camp  came  in  aid  of 


Chap.  IV.] 


BATTI  a  01-   LAK      JEORGB. 


105 


the  English,  and  the  pursuil  ^vas  cf  ked.  Y  t  th. 
retreating  men  were  not  the  less  r<  -d  wL  they 
coidd  discern,  between  the  brown  tiunins  t'  the 
woods,  the  mountains  and  waters  T>iik(  (Jeorge, 
with  the  white  tents  of  their  encampments  on  its 
shore.  The  French  followed  no  farther.  The  blast 
of  their  trmnpets  was  heard  recalling  their  scattered 
men  for  a  final  attack. 

During  the  absence  of  Williams'  detachment,  the 
main  body  of  the  army  had  covered  the  front  of  their 
camp  with  a  breastwork,  if  that  name  can  be  applied 
to  a  row  of  logs,  behind  which  the  marksmen  lay  flat 
on  their  faces.  This  preparation  was  not  yet  complete, 
when  the  defeated  troops  appeared  issuing  Lorn  the 
woods.  Breathless  and  perturbed,  they  entered  the 
camp,  and  lay  down  with  the  rest.  Full  of  dismal 
forebodings,  the  army  waited  the  attack.  Soon,  at  the 
edge  of  the  woods  which  bordered  the  open  space  in 
front,  painted  Indians  were  seen,  and  bayonets  glittered 
among  the  foliage,  shining,  in  the  homely  coinparison 
of  a  New  England  soldier,  like  a  row  of  icicles  on  a 
January  morning.  The  French  regulars  marched  in 
column  to  the  edge  of  the  clearing,  and  formed  in  line, 
confronting  the  English  at  the  distance  of  a  hundred 
and  fifty  yards.  Their  complete  order,  their  white 
uniforms  and  bristling  bayonets,  were  a  new  and 
startling  sight  to  the  eyes  of  Johnson's  rustic  soldiers, 
who  raised  but  a  feeble  cheer  in  answer  to  the  shouts 
of  their  enemies.  Happily,  Dieskau  made  no  assault. 
The  regidars  opened  a  distant  fire,  throwing  volley 
after  volley  of  musketry  against  the  English,  while  the 
Canadians  and  Indians,  dispersing  through  the  morasses 
on  each  flank  of  the  camp,  fired  sharply,  under  cover 
of  the  trees  and  bushes.  In  the  rear,  the  English 
14 


if 


106 


COLLISION  OF  Till'.  KIVAL  COLONIES.        (Ciup.  IV. 


were  protected  by  the  lake ;  but  on  tbc  three  renmining 
sides,  they  were  hedged  in  by  the  flasli  and  smoke  of 
musketry. 

The  fire  of  the  French  had  little  effect.  The  Eng- 
lish  recovered  from  their  first  surprise,  and  every 
moment  their  confidence  rose  higher  and  tli  ir  shouts 
grew  louder.  Levelling  their  long  hunting  guns  with 
cool  precision,  they  returned  a  fire  which  thinned  the 
ranks  of  the  French,  and  galled  them  beyond  endurance. 
Two  cannon  were  soon  brought  to  bear  upon  the  mo- 
rasses which  sheltered  the  Canadians  and  Indians ;  and 
though  the  pieces  were  served  with  little  skill,  the 
assailants  were  so  terrified  by  the  crashing  of  the 
balls  among  the  trunks  and  branches,  that  they  gave 
way  at  once.  Dieskau  still  persisted  in  the  attack. 
From  noon  imtil  past  four  o'clock,  the  firing  was 
scarcely  abated,  when,  at  length,  the  French,  who  had 
suffered  extremely,  showed  signs  of  wavering.  At 
this,  with  a  general  shout,  the  English  broke  from 
their  camp,  and  rushed  upon  their  enemies,  striking 
them  down  with  the  buts  of  their  guns,  and  driving 
them  through  the  woods  like  deer.  Dieskau  was 
taken  prisoner,  dangerously  wounded,  and  leaning  for 
support  against  the  stump  of  a  tree.  The  slaugh- 
ter would  have  been  great,  had  not  the  English  gen- 
eral recalled  the  pui'suers,  and  suffered  the  French  to 
continue  their  flight  unmolested.  Fresh  disasters  still 
awaited  the  fugitives;  for,  as  they  approached  the 
scene  of  that  morning's  ambuscade,  they  were  greeted 
by  a  volley  of  musketry.  Two  companies  of  New 
York  and  New  Ilanipshii'e  rangers,  who  had  come 
out  from  Fort  Edward  as  a  scouting  party,  had  lain 
in  wait  to  receive  them.  Favored  by  the  darkness  of 
the  woods,  —  for  night  was  now  approacliing, —  they 


Chap.  IV] 


PROQUE88  OP  THE  WAR. 


107 


made   so   sudden    and   vigorous   an   attack,   that  the 
Fronch,  though  far  sui^rior  in  number,  were  totally*  r 
routed  and  dispcrwed.^  ,     .  *; 

On  this  day,  the  British  colonists  of  America,  for 
the  first  time,  encountered  in  battle  the  trained  sol- 
diers of  Europe.  That  memorable  conflict  has  cast 
its  dark  associations  over  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
spots  in  America.  Near  the  scene  of  the  evening 
fight,  a  pool,  half  overgrown  by  weeds  and  water  lilies, 
and  darkened  by  the  surrounding  forest,  is  pointed  out 
to  the  tourist,  and  he  is  told  that  beneath  its  stagnant 
waters  lie  the  bones  of  three  hundred  Frenchmen, 
deep  buried  in  mud  and  slime.  > 

The  war  thus  begun  was  prosecuted  for  five  succeed- 
ing years  with  the  full  energy  of  both  nations.  The 
period  was  one  of  suffering  and  anxiety  to  the  colonists, 
who,  knowing  the  full  extent  of  their  danger,  spared 
no  exertion  to  avert  it.  In  the  year  1758,  Lord  Aber- 
crombie,  who  then  commanded  in  America,  had  at  his 


■31 

m 


f 

'■■■I 


1^' 


'  Holmes,  II.  210.  Trumbull,  Hist. 
Conn.  II.  368.  Dwight,  Travels,  III. 
3G1.  Hoyt,  Indian  Wars,  279.  En- 
tick,  Hist.  Late  War,  I.  153.  Re- 
view of  Military  Operations  in  North 
America.  Johnson's  Letter  to  the 
Provincial  Governors.  Blodgett's 
Prospective  View  of  the  Battle  near 
Lake  George. 

Blodgett's  pamphlet  is  accompa- 
nied by  a  curious  engraving,  giving 
a  bird's  eye  view  of  the  battle,  in- 
cluding the  surprise  of  Williams' 
detachment,  and  the  subsequent  at- 
tack on  the  camp  of  Johnson.  In 
tlie  first  half  of  the  engraving,  the 
French  army  is  represented  lying  in 
ambuscade  in  the  form  of  a  horse- 
slioc.  Hcndrick  is  conspicuous  among 
tiie  English,  from  being  mounted  on 
horseback,  while  all  the  others  are 
on  foot.  In  the  view  of  the  battle  at 
the  lake,  the  English  are  represented 


lying  flat  on  their  faces,  behind  their 
breastwork,  and  busily  firing  at  the 
French  and  Indians,  who  are  seen 
skulking  among  the  woods  and 
thickets. 

I  am  again  indebted  to  President 
Sparks  for  the  opportunity  of  exam- 
ining several  curious  manuscripts  re- 
lating to  the  battle  of  Lake  George. 
Among  them  is  Dieskau's  official  ac- 
count of  the  affair,  and  a  curious 
paper,  also  written  by  the  defeated 
general,  and  containing  the  story  of 
his  disaster,  as  related  by  himself 
in  an  imaginary  conversation  with 
his  old  commander.  Marshal  Saxe, 
in  tlie  Elysian  Fields.  Several  wri- 
ters have  stated  that  Dieskau  died  of 
his  wounds.  This,  however,  was 
not  the  case.  He  was  carried  pris- 
oner to  England,  where  he  lived  for 
several  years,  but  returned  to  France 
ufler  tlje  peace  of  1763. 


1  1^ 
■      f 


I 


108 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


disposal  a  force  amounting  to  fifty  thousand  men,  of 
"ivhom  the  greater  part  were  provincials.'  The  opera- 
tions of  the  war  embraced  a  wide  extent  of  country, 
from  Cape  Breton  and  Nova  Scotia  to  the  sources  of 
the  Ohio;  but  nowhere  was  the  contest  so  actively 
carried  on  as  in  the  neighborhood  of  Lake  George,  the 
waters  of  which,  joined  with  those  of  Lake  Champlain, 
formed  the  main  avenue  of  communication  between 
Canada  and  the  British  provinces.  Lake  George  is 
more  than  thirty  miles  long,  but  of  width  so  slight 
that  it  seems  like  some  broad  and  placid  river,  enclosed 
between  ranges  of  lofty  mountains ;  now  contracting 
into  narrows,  thickly  dotted  with  islands  and  shadowed 
by  cliffs  and  precipices,  and  now  spreading  into  a  clear 
and  open  expanse.  It  had  long  been  knoAvn  to  the 
French.  The  wandering  Jesuits  had  called  it  Lac  St. 
Sacrement,  in  admiratioi  of  its  romantic  scenery  and 
the  cool  purity  of  its  waters,  which  they  loved  to 
use  in  their  sacred  rites.  Its  solitude  was  now 
rudely  invaded.  Armies  passed  and  repassed  upon  its 
tranquil  bosom.  At  its  northern  point  the  French 
planted  their  stronghold  of  Ticonderoga ;  at  its  south- 
em  stood  the  English  fort  William  Henry,  while  the 
mountains  and  waters  between  were  a  scene  of  ceaseless 
ambuscades,  surprises,  and  forest  skirmishing.  Through 
summer  and  winter,  the  crack  of  rifles  and  the  cries 
of  men  gave  no  rest  to  their  echoes,  and  at  this  day,  on 
the  field  of  many  a  forgotten  fight,  are  dug  up  rusty- 
tomahawks,  corroded  bullets,  and  human  bones,  to 
attest  the  struggles  of  the  past. 

The  earlier  years  of  the  war  were  unpropitious  to 
the  English,  whose  commanders  displayed  no  great 


1  Holmes,  II.  2»& 


*)' 


Chap.  IV.]  OSWEGO— FORT  WILLIAM  HENRY. 


109 


degree  of  vigor  or  ability.  In  the  summer  of  1756, 
the  French  general  Montcalm  advanced  upon  Osw^fo, 
took  it,  and  levelled  it  to  the  ground.  In  August 
of  the  following  year,  he  struck  a  heavier  blow- 
Passing  liake  George  with  a  force  of  eight  thousand 
men,  including  about  two  thousand  Indians,  gathered 
from  the  farthest  parts  of  Canada,  he  laid  siege  to  Fort 
William  Henry,  close  to  the  spot  where  Dieskau  had 
been  defeated  two  years  before.  Erecting  his  batteries 
against  it,  he  beat  down  its  ramparts  and  dismounted 
its  guns,  until  the  garrison,  after  a  brave  defence,  were 
forced  to  capitulate.  They  marched  out  with  the  hon- 
ors of  war ;  but  scarcely  had  they  done  so,  when 
Montcalm's  Indians  assailed  them,  cutting  do^vn  and 
scalping  them  without  mercy.  Those  who  escaped 
came  in  to  Fort  Edward  with  exaggerated  accounts 
of  the  horrors  from  which  they  had  fled,  and  a  general 
terror  was  spread  through  the  country.  The  inhab- 
itants were  mustered  from  all  parts  to  repel  the  ad- 
vance of  Montcalm;  but  the  French  general,  satisfied 
with  what  he  had  done,  repassed  Lake  George,  and 
retired  behind  the  walls  of  Ticondcroga.    -"^^  ^         «%; 

In  the  year  1758,  the  war  began  to  assume  a  differ- 
ent aspect,  for  Pitt  was  at  the  head  of  the  government. 
Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst  laid  siege  to  the  strong  fortress 
of  Louisburg,  and  at  length  reduced  it ;  while  in  the 
south.  General  Forbes  marched  against  Fort  du  Quesne, 
and,  more  fortunate  than  his  predecessor,  Braddock, 
drove  the  French  from  that  important  point.  Another 
successful  stroke  was  the  destruction  of  Fort  Fron- 
tenac,  which  was  taken  by  a  provincial  anny  under 
Colonel  Bradstrcei.  These  achievements  were  coun- 
terbalanced by  a  signal  disaster.  Lord  Abercrombie, 
with  an  army  of  sixteen  thousand  men,  advanced  to 


m 


(1^ 


^■f 


.1 


0m^u.-- 


110 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


the  head  of  Lake  George,  the  place  made  memorable 
by   Dieskau's   defeat  and   the   loss   of   Fort  William 
Henry.      On  a  brilliant  July  morning,  he  embarked 
his  whole  force  for  an  attack  on  Ticonderoga.     Many 
of   those  present  have  recorded  with  admiration  the 
beauty  of  the  spectacle,  the  lines  of  boats  filled  with 
troops  stretching  far  down  the  lake,  the  flashing  of 
oars,  the  glitter  of  weapons,  and  the  music  ringing 
back  from   crags   and    rocks,   or  dying  in   mellowed 
strains  among  the  distant  mountains.     At  night,  the 
army  landed,   and,  driving    in   the   French   outposts, 
marched    through    the   woods    towards    Ticonderoga. 
One  of  their  columns,  losing  its  way  in  the  forest,  fell 
in  with  a  body  of  the  retreating  French ;  and  in  the 
conflict  that  ensued.  Lord  Howe,  the  favorite  of  the 
army,  was  shot  dead.     On  the  following  morning,  they 
prepared  to  storm  the  lines  which  Montcalm  had  drawn 
across  the  peninsida  in  front  of  the  fortress.     Advan- 
cing to  the  attack,  they  saw  before  them  a  breastwork 
of  uncommon  height  and  thickness.     The  French  army 
were  drawn  up  behind  it,  their  heads  alone  visible,  as 
they  levelled  their  muskets  against  the  assailants,  while, 
for  a  hundred  yards  in  front  of  the  work,  the  ground 
was  covered  with  felled  trees,  with  sharpened  branches 
pointing  outward.     The  signal  of  assault  was  given. 
In  vain  the  Highlanders,  screaming  with  rage,  hewed 
with  their  broadswords  among  the  branches,  struggling 
to  get  at  the  enemy.     In  vain  the  English,,  with  their 
deep-toned  shout,  rushed  on   in  heavy  columns.      A 
tempest  of  musket  balls  met  them,  and  Montcalm's 
cannon  swept  the  wliole  ground  with  terrible  carnage. 
A  few  officers  and  men  forced  their  way  through  the 
.branches,  passed  the  ditch,  climbed  the  breastwork,  and, 
ing  among  tlie  enemv,  were  inatantlv  bavonetted. 


f"'6 


tnmu  ttAvmim 


Chap.  IV.] 


STATE  OF  CANADA. 


Ill 


Yet,  though  the  English  fought  four  hours  with 
detemiined  valor,  the  position  of  the  French  was  im- 
pregnable; and  at  length,  having  lost  two  thousand 
of  their  number,  the  army  drew  off,  leaving  many  of 
their  dead  scattered  upon  the  field.  A  sudden  panic 
seized  the  defeated  troops.  They  rushed  in  haste  to 
their  boats,  and,  though  no  pursuit  was  attempted, 
they  did  not  regain  their  composure  until  Lake  George 
was  between  them  and  the  enemy.  The  fatal  lines 
of  Ticonderoga  A\ere  not  soon  forgotten  in  the  prov- 
inces; and  marbles  in  Westminster  Abbey  preserve 
the  memory  of  those  who  fell  on  that  disastrous  day. 

This  repulse,  far  from  depressing  the  energies  of 
the  British  commanders,  seemed  to  stimulate  them  to 
new  exertion;  and  the  campaign  of  the  next  year, 
1759,  had  for  its  object  the  immediate  and  total  re- 
duction of  Canada.  This  unhappy  country  was  full 
of  misery  and  disorder.  Peculation  and  every  kind 
of  corruption  prevailed  among  its  civil  and  military 
chiefs,  a  reckless  licentiousness  was  increasing  among 
the  people,  and  a  general  famine  seemed  impending, 
for  the  population  had  of  late  years  been  drained 
away  for  military  service,  and  the  fields  were  left  un- 
tilled.  In  spite  of  their  sufferings,  the  Canadians, 
strong  in  rooted  antipathy  to  the  English,  and  highly 
excited  by  their  priests,  resolved  on  fighting  to  the 
last.  Prayers  were  offered  up  in  the  churches,  masses 
said,  and  penances  enjoined,  to  avert  the  wrath  of  God 
from  the  colony,  while  every  thing  was  done  for  its 
defence  which  the  energies  of  a  great  and  patriotic 
leader  could  effect.' 

By  the   plan   of  this   summer's   campaign,   Canada 


•stoj 


1  Smith,  Hist.  Canada,  I.  Chap.  VI. 


I 


112 


COLLISION  OF  THE  BIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


was  to  be  assailed  on  three  sides  at  once.  Upon  the 
west,  General  Prideaux  was  to  attack  Niagara ;  upon 
the  south,  General  Amherst  was  to  advance  upon 
Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point;  while  upon  the  east, 
General  Wolfe  was  to  besiege  Quebec;  and  each  of 
these  armies,  having  accomplished  its  particular  ob- 
ject, was  directed  to  push  forward,  if  possible,  until 
all  three  had  united  their  forces  in  the  heart  of 
Canada.  In  pursuance  of  the  plan.  General  Prideaux 
moved  up  Lake  Ontario  and  invested  Niagara.  This 
post  was  one  of  the  greatest  impoitance.  Its  capture 
would  cut  off  the  French  from  the  whole  interior 
country,  and  they  therefore  made  every  effort  to  raise 
the  siege.  An  army  of  seventeen  hundred  French 
and  Indians,  collected  at  the  distant  garrisons  of  De- 
troit, Presqu'Isle,  Le  Bceuf,  and  Venango,  suddenly 
appeared  before  Niagara.^  Sir  William  Johnson  was 
now  in  command  of  the  English,  Prideaux  having 
been  killed  by  the  bursting  of  a  cohom.  Advancing 
in  order  of  battle,  he  met  the  French,  charged,  rout- 
ed, and  pursued  them  for  five  miles  through  the 
woods.  This  success  was  soon  followed  by  the  sur- 
render 01  the  fort.      ?*  *  "^'^'   '    •  *  v    ': J^>,  > r      t 

In  the  mean  time.  Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst  had  crossed 
Lake  George,  and  appeared  before  Ticonderoga ;  upon 
which  the  French  blew  up  their  works,  and  retired 
down  Lake  Champlain  to  Crown  Point.  Retreating 
from  this  position  also,  on  the  approach  of  the  Eng- 
lish army,  they  collected  all  their  forces,  amounting 
to  little  more  than  thrw  thousand  men,  at  Isle  Aux 
Noix,  where  tlicy  intrenched  themselves,  and  prepared 
to  resist  the   farther  progress  of  the   invaders.     The 


1  Annua!  Registf-r.  1759.  d.  33. 


Cmap.  IV.] 


WOLFE  BETOEE  QUEBEC. 


113 


lateness  of  the  season  prevented  Amherst  from  carry- 
ing out  the  plan  of  advancing  into  Canada,  and  com- 
pelled him  to  go  into  winter-quarters  at  Crown  Point. 
The  same  cause  had  withheld  Prideaux's  aniiy  from 
descending  the  St.  Lawrence. 

While  the  outposts  of  Canada  were  thus  success- 
fully attacked,  a  blow  was  struck  at  a  more  vital 
part.  Early  in  June,  General  "VVolfe  sailed  up  the 
St.  LaAvrence  with  a  force  of  eight  thousand  men,  and 
formed  his  camp  immediately  below  the  city,  on  the 
Island  of  Orleans.'  From  thence  he  could  discern, 
at  a  single  glance,  how  arduous  was  the  task  before 
him.  Piles  of  lofty  cliffs  rose  with  sheer  ascent  on 
the  northern  border  of  the  river;  and  from  their 
summits  the  boasted  citadel  of  Canada  looked  down 
in  proud  security,  with  its  churches  and  convents  of 
stone,  its  rara))arts,  bastions,  and  batteries,  Avhilc  over 
them  all,  from  the  very  brink  of  the  precipice,  towered 
the  massive  walls  of  the  Castle  of  St.  Louis.  Above, 
for  many  a  league,  the  bank  was  guarded  by  an  im- 
broken  range  of  steep  acclivities.  Below,  the  River 
St.  Charles,  flowing  into  the  St.  Lawrence,  washed 
the  base  of  the  rocky  promontory  on  which  the  city 
stood.  Lower  yet  lay  an  araiy  of  fourteen  thousand 
men,  under  an  able  and  renowned  commander,  the 
Marquis  of  Montcalm.  His  front  was  covered  by  in- 
trenchmcnts  and  batteries,  which  lined  the  bank  of 
the  St.  Lawrence ;  his  right  wing  rested  on  the  city 
and  the  St.  Charles;  his  left  on  the  cascade  and  deep 
gulf  of  Montmorenci ;  and  thick  forests  extended  along 
his  rear.  Opposite  Quebec  rose  the  high  promontory 
of  Point  Levi;    and  the   St.  Lawrence,  contracted  to 


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COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


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less  than  a  mile  in  width,  llowed  between,  with  deep 
and  powerful  current.  To  a  chief  of  less  resolute 
temper,  it  might  well  have  seemed  that  art  and  nature 
were  in  league  to  thwart  his  enterprise;  but  a  mind 
like  that  of  Wolfe  could  only  have  seen  in  this  ma- 
jestic combination  of  forest  and  cataract,  mountain 
and  river,  a  fitting  theatre  for  the  great  drama  about 
to  be  enacted  there. 

Yet  nature  did  not  seem  to  have  formed  the  3'oung 
English  general  for  the  conduct  of  a  doubtful  and 
almost  desperate  enterprise.  His  person  was  slight, 
and  his  features  by  no  means  of  a  martial  cast.  His 
feeble  constitution  had  been  undennined  by  years  of 
protracted  and  painful  disease.'  His  kind  and  genial 
disposition  seemed  better  fitted  for  the  quiet  of  do- 
mestic life,  than  for  the  stern  duties  of  military  com- 
mand; but  to  these  gentler  traits  he  joined  a  high 
enthusiasm,  and  an  unconquerable  spirit  of  daring 
and  endurance,  which  made  him  the  idol  of  his  sol- 
diers, and  bore  his  slender  frame  through  every  hard- 
ship and  exposure.  •M,:**.-^-    •    !;<<*•   ..^^  ■..;*i;.Sv  a--'  -^ 

The  work  before  him  demanded  all  his  courage. 
How  to  invest  the  city,  or  even  bring  the  army  of 
Montcalm  to  action,  was  a  problem  which  might  have 
j>erplexed  a  Hannibal.  A  French  fleet  lay  in  the  river 
above,  and  the  precipices  along  tlie  northern  bank 
were   guarded   at   every  accessible   point   by  sentinels 


I  •*  I  have  this  day  signiticd  to  Mr. 
Pitt  that  he  may  dispose  of  my  slight 
carcass  as  he  pleases,  and  that  I  nm 
ready  for  any  undertaking  witiiin  the 
r«acn  and  compass  of  my  skill  and 
cunning.  I  am  in  a  very  bad  con- 
dition, botlj  with  the  gravel  and  rheu- 
matism ;  but  I  had  much  rather  diu 
than  decline  any  kind  of  service  that 
ofTers :  if  I  followed  my  own  taste,  it 


would  lead  me  into  Germany ;  and  if 
my  poor  talent  was  consulted,  tlioy 
should  place  me  to  the  cavalry,  be- 
cause nature  lias  given  nie  good  eyes, 
and  a  warmth  of  temper  to  follow  tlio 
first  impressions.  However,  it  is  not 
our  part  to  choose,  but  to  obey."  — 
Ijtiler  —  ff'olfe  to  fViUinm  Rickmn, 
Saliabury,  December  I,  17r»8. 


Chap.  IV-I 

and  outp 

morenci 

army  on 

by  the  11 

lance  of 

point,  he 

calm's  p< 

thirty-fir! 

barked  i 

from  the 

beach   ji 

The   gre 

on   show 

ruin  of 

orders  o 

the  level 

gan,  eacl 

rose  in  : 

with   h( 

volley   { 

The   sic 

at  that 

ening,  ' 

ants  on 

for  a  rr 

time  m 

fell  rep 

was   cc 

was  so 

of    In( 

hovere 

and  til 

Vive 

the  tri 


Chap.  IV.] 


ASSAULT  AT  MONTMORENCL 


115. 


and  outposts.  Wolfe  would  have  crossed  the  Mont- 
morenci  by  its  upper  ford,  and  attacked  the  French 
army  on  its  left  and  rear ;  but  the  plan  was  thwarted 
by  the  nature  of  the  ground  and  the  sleepless  vigi- 
lance of  his  adversaries.  Thus  baffled  at  every  other 
point,  he  formed  the  bold  design  of  storming  Mont- 
calm's position  in  front ;  and  on  the  afternoon  of  tlie 
thirty-first  of  July,  a  strong  body  of  troops  was  em- 
barked in  boats,  and,  covered  by  a  furious  cannonade 
from  the  English  ships  and  batteries,  landed  on  the 
beach  just  above  the  mouth  of  the  Montmorenci. 
The  grenadiers  and  Royal  Americans  were  the  first 
on  shore,  and  their  ill-timed  impetuosity  proved  tlie 
ruin  of  the  plan.  Without  waiting  to  receive  their 
orders  or  form  their  ranks,  they  ran,  pellmell,  across 
the  level  ground  between,  and  with  loud  shouts  be- 
gan, each  man  for  himself,  to  scale  the  heights  whicli 
rose  in  front,  crested  with  intrenchment^  and  bristling 
with  hostile  arms.  The  French  at  the  top  threw 
volley  after  volley  among  the  hotheaded  assailants. 
The  slopes  were  soon  covered  with  the  fallen;  and 
at  that  instant  a  storm,  which  had  long  been  threat- 
ening, burst  with  sudden  fury,  drenched  the  combat- 
ants on  both  sides  with  a  deluge  of  rain,  extinguished 
for  a  moment  the  fire  of  the  French,  and  at  the  same 
time  made  the  steeps  so  slippery  that  the  grenadiers 
fell  repeatedly  in  their  vain  attempts  to  climb.  Niglit 
was  coming  on  with  double  darkness.  The  retreat 
was  sounded,  and,  as  the  English  reembarked,  troops 
of  Indians  came  whooping  down  the  heights,  and 
hovered  about  tlieir  rear,  to  murder  the  stragglers 
and  the  wounded;  wliile  exidting  shouts  and  cries  of 
Vive  le  roi,  from  the  crowded  summits,  proclaimed 
the  triumph  of  the  enemy.     ,    ,  ..;  *  , 


I 

m 


0  :f 


i 

.1 


116 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIWL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


With  bitter  agony  of  mind,  Wolfe  beheld  the  head- 
long folly  of  his  men,  and  saw  more  than  four  hun- 
dred of  the  flower  of  his  army  fall  a  useless  sacri- 
fice.' The  anxieties  of  the  siege  had  told  severely 
upon  his  slender  constitution;  and  not  long  after  this 
disaster,  he  felt  the  first  symptoms  of  a  fever,  which 
soon  confined  him  to  his  couch.  Still  his  mind  never 
wavered  from  its  purpose;  and  it  was  while  lying 
helpless  in  tlie  chamber  of  a  Canadian  hou.se,  where 
he  had  fixed  his  head-quarters,  that  he  embraced  tlie 
plan  of  that  heroic  enterprise  which  robbed  him  of 
life,  and  gave  him  immortal  fame. 

The  plan  had  been  first  proposed  during  the  height 
of  Wolfe's  illness,  at  a  council  of  his  subordinate 
generals,  Monkton,  Townsliend,  and  ^Murray.  It  was 
resolved  to  divide  the  little  army,  and,  while  one  por- 
tion remained  before  Quebec  to  alarm  the  enemy  by 
false  attacks,  and  distract  their  attention  from  the 
scene  of  actual  operation,  the  other  was  to  pass  above 
the  town,  land  imder  cover  of  darkness  on  the  north- 
ern shore,  climb  the  guarded  heights,  gain  the  plains 
above,  and  force  Montcalm  to  quit  his  vantage-ground, 
and  jKjrhaps  to  offer  battle.  The  scheme  was  daring 
even  to  rashness;  but  its  singular  audacity  was  the 
secret  of  its  success.  ..    ^r  ,     H:   .     .     ; 

Early  in  September,  a  crowd  of  sliips  and  trans- 
ports, under  Adn)iral  Holmes,  passed  the  city  amidst 
the  hot  firing  of  its  batteries ;  wliile  the  troops  de- 
signed for  the  exjjcdition,  amounting  to  scarcely  five 
thousand,  marclied  upward  along  the  southern  bank, 
beyond  reach  of  the  cannonade.  All  were  then  em- 
barked ;   and  on  the  evening  of  tlie  twelfth,  Holmes' 


1  Knox,  JournulH,  I.  ."Jot?. 


Chap.  IV.] 


HEROISM  OF  WOLFE. 


117 


fleet,  with  the  troops  on  board,  lay  safe  at  anchor  in 
the  river,  several  leagues  above  the  town.  These 
operations  had  not  failed  to  awaken  the  suspicions 
of  Montcalm;  and  he  had  detached  M.  Bougainville 
to  watch  the  movements  of  the  English,  and  prevent 
their  landing  on  the  northern  shore. 

The  eventful  night  of  the  twelfth  was  clear  and 
calm,  with  no  light  but  that  of  the  stars.  Within 
two  hours  before  daybreak,  thirty  boats,  crowded  with 
sixteen  hundred  soldiers,  cast  off  from  the  vessels, 
and  floated  downward,  in  perfect  order,  with  the  cur- 
rent of  the  ebb  tide.  To  the  boundless  joy  of  the 
army,  Wolfe's  malady  had  abated,  and  he  was  able 
to  command  in  person.  His  ruined  health,  the  gloomy 
prospects  of  the  siege,  and  the  disaster  at  Montmo- 
renci,  had  oppressed  him  with  the  deepest  melancholy, 
but  never  impaired  for  a  moment  the  promptness  of 
his  decisions,  or  the  impetuous  energy  of  his  action.* 
He  sat  in  the  stem  of  one  of  the  boats,  pale  and 
weak,  but  borne  up  to  a  calm  height  of  resolu- 
tion. Every  order  had  been  given,  every  arrangement 
made,  and  it  only  remained  to  face  the  issue.  The 
ebbing  tide  sufficed  to  bear  the  boats  along,  and  noth- 
ing broke  the  silence  of  the  night  but  the  gurgling 


I 

I'    ■:, 


it  ■!•■ 


1' 


1 
I 

fit 


I 


1  Entick,  IV.  111. 

In  his  Letter  to  the  Ministry,  dated 
Sept.  2,  Wolfe  writes  in  these  de- 
sponding words:  — 

"By  the  nature  of  the  river,  the 
most  formidable  part  of  this  arma- 
ment is  deprived  of  the  power  of  act- 
ing; yet  we  have  almost  the  whole 
force  of  Canada  to  oppose.  In  this 
situation  there  is  such  a  choice  of 
difficulties,  that  I  own  myself  at  a 
loss  how  to  determine.  The  affairs 
of  Great  Britain  I  know  require  the 
most  vigorous  measures,  but  then  the 


courage  of  a  handful  of  brave  troops 
should  be  exerted  only  where  there 
is  some  hope  of  a  favorable  event. 
However,  you  may  be  assured,  tliat 
the  small  part  of  the  campaign  which 
remains  shall  be  employed  (as  far  as 
I  am  able)  for  the  honor  of  his  Majes- 
ty, and  the  interest  of  the  nation ;  in 
which  I  am  sure  of  being  well  sec- 
onded by  the  admiral  and  by  the 
generals:  happy  if  our  efforts  here 
can  contribute  to  the  success  of  his 
Majesty's  arms  in  any  otlier  part  of 
America." 


118 


COLLISION  OF  THE  lilVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


of  the  river  and  the  low  voice  of  Wolfe  as  he  re- 
peated to  the  officers  about  him  the  stanzas  of  Gray's 
Elegy  in  a  Country  Churchyard,  which  had  recently 
appeared,  and  which  he  had  just  received  from  Eng- 
land. Perhaps,  as  he  uttered  those  strangely  appropri- 
ate words, 

"The  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the  grave," 

the  shadows  of  his  own  approaching  fate  stole  with 
mournful  prophecy  across  his  mind.  "  Gentlemen," 
he  said,  as  he  closed  his  recital,  "  I  would  rather 
have  written  those  lines  than  take  Quebec  to-morrow." ' 

As  they  approached  the  landing-place,  the  boats 
edged  closer  in  towards  the  northern  shore,  and  the 
v/oody  precipices  rose  high  on  their  left,  like  a  wall 
of  imdistinguishcd  blackness. 

"  Qui  vive  ? "  shouted  a  French  sentmel,  from  out 
the  unpervious  gloom. 

"  La  France ! "  answered  a  ca-  'tain  of  Eraser's 
Highlanders,  from  the  foremost  boat. 

"^  quel  regiment 'i^"  demanded  the  soldier.  '      "' 

"De  la  Heine  f'  promptly  replied  the  Highland 
captain,  who  chanced  to  knoAv  that  the  corps  so  des- 
ignated formed  part  of  Bougainville's  command.  As 
boats  were  frecjuently  passing  down  the  river  witli 
supplies  for  the  garrison,  and  as  a  convoy  from  Bou- 
gainville was  expected  that  very  night,  the  sentinel 
was   deceived,   and   allowed  the    English   to   proceed. 


1  "This  anecdote  was  related  by 
the  late  celebrated  John  RobLson,  Pro- 
fessor of  Natural  Philosophy  in  the 
University  of  Edinburgh,  who,  in  his 
youth,  was  a  midshipman  in  the  Brit- 
ish navy,  and  was  in  the  same  boat 
with  Wolfe.  His  son,  my  kinsman. 
Sir  John  Robison,  communicated  it 
to  me,  and  it  has  since  been  recorded 


in  the  Transactions  of  the  Royal  So- 
ciety of  Edinburgh. 

*  The  paths  uf  glory  lend  but  to  the  Rrav/ ' 

is  one  of  the  lines  which  Wolfe  must 
have  recited  as  he  strikingly  exem- 
plified its  application."  —  (Irahanio, 
Hiit.  U.  S.  IV.  50.  See  also  flay- 
fttir's  Works,  IV.  126. 


Chap.  IV.] 


THE  HEIGHTS  OF  ABRAHAM. 


119 


A  few  moments  after,  they  wore  challenged  again, 
and  this  time  they  could  discern  the  soldier  running 
close  down  to  the  water's  edge,  as  if  all  his  suspicions 
were  aroused ;  but  the  skilful  replies  of  the  Highlander 
once  more  saved  the  party  from  discovery.^ 

They  r -ached  the  landing-place  in  safety  —  an  in- 
dentation in  the  shore,  about  a  league  above  the  city, 
and  now  bearing  the  name  of  Wolfe's  Cove.  Here  a 
narrow  path  led  up  the  face  of  the  heights,  and  a 
French  guard  was  posted  at  the  top  to  defend  the 
pass.  By  the  force  of  the  current,  the  foremost  boats, 
including  that  which  carried  Wolfe  himself,  were  borne 
a  little  below  the  spot.  The  general  was  one  of  the 
first  on  shore.  He  looked  upward  at  the  rugged 
heights  which  towei-ed  above  him  in  the  gloom.  "  You 
can  try  it,"  he  cjoUy  observed  to  ai)  officer  near  him ; 
"but  I  don't  think  you'll  get  up.'"*    ■'   ^^'^    '"v^ 

At  the  point  where  the  Highlanders  landed,  one  of 
their  captains,  Donald  Macdonald,  apparently  the  same 
whose  presence  of  mind  had  just  saved  the  enteqirise 
from  ruin,  was  climbing  in  advance  of  his  men,  when 
he  was  challenged  by  a  sentinel.  He  replied  in 
French,  by  declaring  that  he  had  been  sent  to  relieve 
the  guard,  and  ordering  the  soldier  to  withdraw."  Be- 
fore the  latter  was  undeceived,  a  crowd  of  Highlanders 
were  close  at  hand,  while  the  steeps  below  were 
thronged  with  eager  climbers,  dragging  themselves  up 
by  trees,  roots,  and  bushes.*    The  guard  turned  out, 


1  Smollett,  V-.W,  note,  (Edinburgh, 
1805.)  Mante  simply  mentions  that 
tlie  English  were  challenged  by  the 
Hcntineis,  and  escaped  discovery  by 
replying  in  French. 

J*  This  incident  is  mentioned  in  a 
manuscript  journal  of  the  siege  of 


Quebec,  by  John  Johnson,  clerk  and 
quartermaster  in  the  58th  regiment. 
The  journal  is  written  with  great 
care,  and  abounds  in  curious  details. 

3  Knox,  Journal,  11.  68,  note. 

4  Despatch  of  Admiral  Saunders, 
Sept.  20,  1759. 


I 

■  H 


■i"^ 


'  1 

■  1 


\  :   f 


120 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


and  made  a  brief  thotigh  brave  resistance.  In  a  mo- 
ment,  tliey  were  cut  to  pieces,  disi)ersed,  or  made  pris- 
oners ;  while  men  after  men  came  swanning  up  the 
height,  and  quickly  fonned  upon  the  plains  above. 
Meanwhile,  the  vessels  had  dropped  downward  with 
the  current,  and  anchored  opposite  the  landing-place. 
The  remaining  troops  were  disembarked,  and,  with 
the  dawn  of  day,  tlie  wliole  were  brought  in  safety 
to  the  shore.  '  ^      ■•  <■  ■".' 

The  sun  rose,  and,  from  the  ramparts  of  Quebec,  the 
astonished  people  saw  the  Plains  of  Abraham  glittering 
with  arms,  and  the  dark-red  lines  of  the  English  form- 
ing in  array  of  battle.  Breathless  messengers  had 
borne  the  evil  tidings  to  Montcalm,  and  far  and  near 
his  wide-extended  camp  resounded  with  the  rolling  of 
alaiTO  drums  and  the  din  of  startled  preparation.  He 
too  had  had  his  struggles  and  his  sorrows.  The  civil 
power  had  thwarted  him ;  famine,  discontent,  and  dis- 
affection were  rife  among  his  soldiers ;  and  no  small 
portion  of  the  Canadian  militia  had  dispersed  from 
sheer  starvation.  In  spite  of  all,  he  had  trusted  to 
hold  out  till  the  winter  frosts  should  drive  the  invade  in 
from  before  the  town ;  when,  on  that  disayln  morn- 
ing, the  news  of  their  successful  temerity  tell  like  a 
cannon  shot  upon  his  ear.  8tUl  he  assmnt>d  a  tone  of 
confidence.  "  They  have  got  to  the  weak  side  of  us  at 
last,"  he  is  reported  to  have  said,  "  and  we  must  crush 
them  with  our  numbers."  With  headlong  haste,  his 
troops  were  pouring  over  the  bridge  of  the  St.  Charles, 
and  gathering  in  heavy  masses  under  the  western  ram- 
parts of  the  town.  Could  numbers  give  assurance  of 
success,  then*  triumph  would  have  been  secure ;  for  five 
French  battalions  and  the  armed  colonial  peasantry 
amounted  in  all  to   more   than   seven   thousand   five 


Chap.  IV] 


BATTLE  OF  QUEBEC. 


121 


hundi'cd  men.  Full  in  sight  before  them  stretched  the 
long,  thin  lines  of  the  British  forces  —  the  half-wild 
Highlanders,  the  steady  soldiery  of  England,  and  the 
hardy  levies  of  the  provinces  —  less  than  five  thousand 
in  number,  but  all  inured  to  battle,  and  strong  in  the 
full  assurance  of  success.  Yet,  could  the  chiefs  of 
that  gallant  army  have  pierced  the  secrets  of  the  future, 
could  they  have  foreseen  that  the  victory  which  they 
burned  to  achieve  would  have  robbed  England  of  her 
proudest  boast,  that  the  conquest  of  Canada  would 
pave  the  way  for  the  independence  of  America,  their 
swords  woidd  have  dropped  from  their  hands,  and  the 
heroic  fire  have  gone  out  within  their  hearts. 

It  was  nine  o'clock,  and  the  adverse  armies  stood 
motionless,  each  gazing  on  the  other.  The  clouds  hung 
low,  and,  at  intervals,  warm  light  showers  descended, 
besprinkling  both  alike.  The  coppice  and  cornfields 
in  front  of  the  British  troops  were  filled  with  French 
sharpshooters,  who  kept  up  a  distant,  spattering  fire. 
Here  and  there  a  soldier  fell  in  the  ranks,  and  the  gap 
was  filled  in  silence. 

At  a  little  before  ten,  the  British  could  sec  that 
Montcalm  was  preparing  to  advance,  and,  in  a  few 
moments,  all  his  troops  appeared  in  rapid  motion. 
They  came  on  in  three  divisions,  shouting  after  the 
manner  of  their  nation,  and  firing  heavily  as  soon  as 
they  came  within  range.  In  the  British  ranks,  not  a 
trigger  was  pidled,  not  a  soldier  stuTed;  and  their 
ominous  composure  seemed  to  damp  the  spirits  of  the 
assailants.  It  was  not  till  the  French  were  within 
forty  yards  that  the  fatal  word  was  given.  At  once, 
from  end  to  end  of  the  British  line,  the  muskets  rose 
to  the  level,  as  if  with  the  sway  of  some  great  ma- 
chine, and  the  whole  blazed  forth  at  once  in  one  crash- 
16  K 


.'^y 


4' 


I 


f  , 


12^ 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.      [Chap.  IV. 


ing  explosion.  Like  a  ship  at  full  career,  arrested  with 
sudden  ruin  on  a  sunken  rock,  the  columns  of  Mont- 
calm staggered,  shivered,  and  hroke  before  that  wasting 
storm  of  lead.  The  smoke,  rolling  along  the  field,  for 
a  moment  shut  out  the  view;  but  when  the  white 
wreaths  were  scattered  on  the  wind,  a  wretched  spec- 
tacle was  disclosed;  men  and  ofiicers  tumbled  in 
heaps,  columns  resolved  into  a  mob,  order  and  obedi- 
ence gone ;  and  when  the  British  muskets  were  levelled 
for  a  second  volley,  the  masses  were  seen  to  cower  and 
shrink  with  uncontrollable  panic.  For  a  few  minutes, 
the  French  regulars  stood  their  ground,  returning  a 
sharp  and  not  ineffectual  fire.  But  now,  echoing  cheer 
on  cheer,  redoubling  volley  on  volley,  trampling  the 
dying  and  the  dead,  and  driving  the  fugitives  in  crowds, 
the  British  troops  advanced  and  swept  the  field  before 
them.  The  ardor  of  the  men  burst  all  restraint.  They 
broke  into  a  run,  and  with  unsparing  slaughter  chased 
the  flying  multitude  to  the  very  gates  of  Quebec. 
Foremost  of  all,  the  light-footed  Highlanders  dashed 
along  in  furious  pursuit,  hewing  down  the  Frenchmen 
with  their  broadswords,  and  slaying  many  in  the  very 
ditch  of  the  fortifications.  Never  was  victory  more 
quick  or  more  decisive.^ 

In  the  short  action  and  pursuit,  the  I  rench  lost  fif- 
teen himdred  men,  killed,  wounded,  and  taken.  Of  the 
i-emainder,  some  escaped  within  the  city,  and  others 
fled  across  the  St.  Charles  to  rejoin  their  comrades  who 


1  Despatch  of  General  Townshend, 
Sept  20.  Gardiner,  Memoirs  of  the 
Siegre  of  Quebec,  38.  Journal  of 
the  Siege  of  Quebec,  by  a  Gentle- 
man in  an  Eminent  Station  on  the 
Spot,  40.  Letter  to  a  Right  Hon- 
orable I'atriot  on  the  Uionous  Hue- 


cess  of  Quebec.     Annual    Regis- 
ter for  1759,  40. 

An  eloquent  account  of  the  siege 
and  capture  of  Quebec  will  be  found 
in  Mr.  Warburton's  Conquest  of 
Canada. 


Chap.  IV] 


DEATH  OF  WOLFE. 


123 


had  been  left  to  guard  the  camp.  The  pursuers  were 
recalled  by  sound  of  trumpet ;  the  broken  ranks  were 
formed  afresh,  and  the  English  troops  withdrawn  be- 
yond reach  of  the  cannon  of  Quebec.  Bougainville, 
with  his  detachment,  arrived  from  the  upper  country, 
and,  hovering  about  their  rear,  threatened  an  attack ; 
but  when  he  saw  what  greeting  was  prepared  for  him, 
he  abandoned  his  purpose  and  withdrew.  Townshend 
and  Murray,  the  only  general  officers  who  remained 
unhurt,  passed  to  the  head  of  every  regiment  in  turn, 
and  thanked  the  soldiers  for  the  bravery  they  had 
shown;  yet  the  triumph  of  the  victors  was  mingled 
with  sadness  as  the  tidings  went  from  rank  to  rank 
that  Wolfe  had  fallen. 

In  the  heat  of  the  action,  as  he  advanced  at  the 
head  of  the  grenadiers  of  Louisburg,  a  bullet  shattered 
his  wrist ;  but  he  wrapped  his  handkerchief  aLout  the 
wound,  and  showed  no  sign  of  pain.  A  moment  more, 
and  a  ball  pierced  his  side.  Still  he  pressed  forward, 
waving  his  sword  and  cheering  his  soldiers  to  the 
attack,  when  a  third  shot  lodged  deep  within  his  breast. 
He  paused,  reeled,  and,  staggering  to  one  side,  fell  to 
the  earth.  Brown,  a  lieutenant  of  the  grenadiers,  Hen- 
derson, a  volunteer,  an  officer  of  artillery,  and  a  private 
soldier  raised  him  together  in  their  arms,  and,  bearing 
him  to  the  rear,  laid  him  softly  on  the  grass.  They 
asked  if  he  would  have  a  surgeon ;  but  he  shook  his 
head,  and  answered  that  all  was  ever  with  him.  His 
eyes  closed  with  the  torpor  of  approaching  death,  and 
those  around  sustained  his  fainting  form.  Yet  they 
could  not  withhold  their  gaze  from  the  wild  turmoil 
before  them,  and  the  charging  ranks  of  their  compan- 
ions rushing  through  fire  and  smoke.     "  See  how  they 


run,"  one  of  the  officers  exclaimed,  as  the  French 


lied 


124 


COLLISION  OF  TIIE  RIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


in  confusion  before  the  levelled  bayonets.  "Who 
run  ?  "  demanded  Wolfe,  opening  his  eyes  lik(?  a  man 
aroused  from  sleep.  "  The  enemy,  sir,"  was  the  reply  ; 
"  they  give  way  every  where,  '  "  Then,"  said  the  dying 
general,  "  tell  Colonel  Burton  to  march  Webb's  regi- 
ment down  to  Charles  River,  to  cut  off  their  retreat 
from  the  bridge.  Now,  God  be  praised,  I  wUl  die  in 
peace,"  he  murmured;  and,  turning  on  his  side,  he 
calmly  breathed  his  last.^ 

Almost  at  the  same  moment  fell  his  great  adversary, 
Montcalm,  as  he  strove,  with  useless  bravery,  to  rally 
his  shattered  ranks.  Struck  down  with  a  mortal 
wound,  he  was  placed  upon  a  litter  and  borne  to  the 
General  Hospital  on  the  banks  of  the  St.  Charles.  The 
surgeons  told  him  that  he  could  not  recover.  "  I  am 
glad  of  it,"  was  his  calm  reply.  He  then  asked  how  long 
he  might  survive,  and  was  told  >  \e  had  not  many 
hours  remaining.     "So  much  tl  ter,"  he  said;  "I 

am  happy  that  I  shall  not  live  to  see  the  surrender  of 
Quebec."  Officers  from  the  garrison  came  to  his  bed- 
side to  ask  his  orders  and  instructions.  "  I  will  give 
no  more  orders,"  replied  the  defeated  soldier ;  "  I  have 
much  business  that  must  be  attended  to,  of  greater 
moment  than  your  ruined  garrison  and  this  wretched 
country.  My  time  is  very  short ;  therefore,  pray  leave 
me."  The  officers  withdrew,  and  none  remained  in  the 
chamber  but  his  confessor  and  the  Bishop  of  Quebec. 
To  the  last,  he  expressed  his  contempt  for  his  own 
mutinous  and  half-famished  troops,  and  his  admiration 
for  the  disciplined  valor  of  his  opponents.''    He  died 


:'^-  M' 


1  Knox,  II.  76.  Knox  derived  his 
information  from  the  person  who 
sapported  Wolfe  in  his  dying  mo- 


•  Krox,  IL  77. 


t,4-^ 


Dieuu. 


r» 


1.1. 


Chap.  IV.] 


SURRENDER  OF  QUEBEC. 


125 


before  midnight,  and  was  buried  at  his  own  desire  in 
a  cavity  of  the  earth  foimed  by  the  bursting  of  a 
bombshell.  '  ,;■* 

The  victorious  army  encamped  before  Quebec,  and 
pushed  their  preparations  for  the  siege  with  zealous 
energy;  but  before  a  single  gun  was  brought  to  bear, 
the  white  flag  was  hung  out,  and  the  garrison  surren- 
dered. On  the  eighteenth  of  September,  1759,  the 
rock-built  citadel  of  Canada  passed  forever  trom  the 
hands  of  its  ancient  masters.  ,     ' 

The  victory  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham  and  the  down- 
fall of  Quebec  filled  all  England  with  pride  and  exulta- 
tion. From  north  to  south,  the  whole  land  blazed 
with  illuminations,  and  resounded  with  the  ringing  of 
bells,  the  firing  of  guns,  and  the  shouts  of  the  multi- 
tude. In  one  village  alone  all  was  dark  and  silent 
amid  the  general  joy;  for  here  dwelt  the  widowed 
mother  of  Wolfe.  The  populace,  with  unwonted  del- 
icacy, respected  her  lonely  sorrow,  and  forbore  to  ob- 
trude the  sound  of  their  rejoicings  upon  her  grief 
for  one  who  had  been  through  life  her  pride  and  sol- 
ace, and  repaid  her  love  with  a  tender  and  constant 
devotion.^  y        r     , 

Canada,  crippled  and  dismembered  by  the  disasters 
of  this  year's  campaign,  lay  waiting,  as  it  were,  the 
final  stroke  which  was  to  extinguish  her  last  remains 
of  life,  and  close  the  eventful  story  of  French  domin- 
ion in  America.  Her  limbs  and  her  head  were  lopped 
away,  but  life  still  fluttered  at  her  heart.  Quebec, 
Niagara,  Frontcnac,  and  Crown  Point  had  fallen ;  but 
Montreal  and  the  adjacent  country  still  held  out,  and 
thither,  with  the  opening  season  of  1760,  the  British 


\   1 

■  '^  •■: 
-  'i '^ ■ 

■   !  1,  ■ 


1  Annual  Register  for  1759,  4a 


K 


*.i  , 


126 


COLLISION  OF  THE  RIVAL  COLONIES.       [Chap.  IV. 


'■4m 


commanders  turned  all  their  e:?*?rgie8.  Three  armies 
were  to  enter  Canada  ol  three  se.  rii  points,  and,  con- 
quering as  they  advanced,  converge  towards  Montreal 
as  a  common  centre.  In  accordance  with  this  plan, 
Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst  embarked  at  Oswego,  crossed  Lake 
Ontario,  and  descended  the  St.  Lawrence  with  ten  thou- 
sand men ;  while  Colonel  Haviland  advanced  by  way 
of  Lake  Champlain  and  the  River  Sorel,  and  General 
Murray  ascended  from  Quebec,  with  a  body  of  the  vet- 
erans who  had  fought  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham. 

By  a  singular  concurrence  of  fortune  and  skill,  the 
three  armies  reached  the  neighborhood  of  Montreal  on 
the  same  day.  The  feeble  and  disheartened  garrison 
could  offer  no  resistance,  and  on  the  eighth  of  Septem- 
ber, 1760,  the  Marquis  de  Vtiudreuil  surrendered  Can- 
ada, with  all  its  dependencies,  to  the  British  crown. 


'  "^^  '■  'f  ^A>¥i' ,  ^i'-'i 

,fj?=fc^ 

V. 

1  r^  i-:-iu: 

>jtvtevi. 

>,"t;:fs,   lr:'-,»  'y.!      - 

-  -'.ii;/ 

■:-;.  ■,-•■■' 

■'  .f;^'  '  -.i'  ■    '  ■  ~  '  \', 

v'''"-'^^v      ;■"       ■    -. 

-i,  ■:  -fyW^-'Vi^i '■: .^iiK-C.  y-Z 

.  .r*'^  1  \ 

y  f' 

"  -■' 

■  >'"    >v. .*■';•    4<i^ 

\^'''j 

-'.-*•■ 

-\' ) 

,      ..."        +              .      ■•    *    .. 

c      /, 

^"*'V 

•>:j!v     '■ 

-■■■-''       r.                 '• 

'>   '■ 

.  ;  ,                 .   '                  »._•''            .,    ^'* 

":*>,    ^ 


'■    ,■*■.■•>■ 


cf  the  All 


■■4''*^*'' 


■■'^t;"  t'^^!i'*¥#*^  ■^fT"yv^i'*-^ii'''"S^' 


.,,  r-  • 


■mm 


^ 


CHAPTER    V. 

THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS  AT  THE  CLOSE  ] 
*  OP  THE  FRENCH  WAR.  !^' ' 

We  have  already  seen  Low,  after  the  defeat  of 
Braddock,  the  western  tribes  rose  with  one  accord 
against  the  English.  Then,  for  the  first  time,  Penn- 
sylvania felt  the  scourge  of  Indian  war;  and  her 
neighbors,  Maryland  and  Virginia,  shared  her  misery. 
Through  the  autumn  of  1755,  the  storm  raged  with 
devastating  fury ;  but  the  following  year  brought 
some  abatement  of  its  violence.  This  may  be  ascribed 
partly  to  the  interference  of  the  Iroquois,  who,  at  the 
instances  of  Sir  William  Johnson,  urged  the  Dela- 
wares  to  lay  down  the  hatchet,  and  partly  to  the  per- 
suasions of  several  prominent  men  among  the  Quakers, 
who,  by  kind  and  friendly  treatment,  had  gained  the 
confidence  of  the  Indians,*  By  these  means,  that  por- 
tion of  the  Delawares  and  their  kindred  tribes  who 
dwelt  upon  the  Susquehanna,  were  induced  to  send 
a  deputation  of  chiefs  to  Easton,  in  the  summer  of 
1757,  to  meet  the  provincial  delegates;  and  here, 
after  much  delay  and  difficulty,  a  treaty  of  peace  was 
concluded. 

This  treaty,  however,  did  not  embrace  the  Indians 
of  the  Ohio,  who  comprised  the  most  formidable  part 

1  Gordon,  Hist  Penn.  321.  Causes    Shawanese  Indians  from  the  British 
of  the  Alienation  of  the  Delaware  and    Interest,  MS.  Johnson  Papers. 


pi 


lip 


ff 


I  r^'' 


128 


THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.       [Chap.  V. 


of  the  Delawares  and  Sha^anoes,  and  who  still  con- 
tinued their  murderous  attacks.  It  was  not  till  the 
summer  of  1758,  when  General  Forbes,  with  a  consider- 
able army,  was  advancing  against  Fort  du  Quesne,  that 
these  exasperated  savages  could  be  brought  to  reason. 
Well  knowing  that,  should  Forbes  prove  successful, 
they  might  expect  a  summary  chastisement  for  their 
misdeeds,  they  began  to  waver  in  their  attachment  to 
the  French;  and  the  latter,  in  the  hour  of  peril, 
found  themselves  threatened  with  desertion  by  allies 
who  had  shown  an  ample  alacrity  in  the  season  of 
prosperity.  This  new  tendency  of  the  Ohio  Indians 
was  fostered  by  a  wise  step  on  the  part  of  the  Eng- 
lish. A  man  was  found  bold  and  hardy  enough  to 
venture  into  the  midst  of  their  villages,  bearing  the 
news  of  the  treaty  at  Easton,  and  the  approach  of 
Forbes,  coupled  with  proposals  of  peace  from  vlie 
governor  of  Pennsylvania, 

This  stout-hearted  eniissary  was  Christian  Frederic 
Post,  a  Moravian  missionary,  who  had  long  lived  with 
the  Indians,  had  twice  married  among  them,  and,  by 
his  upright  dealings  and  plain  good  sense,  had  gained 
their  confidence  and  esteem.  His  devout  and  consci- 
entious spirit,  his  fidelity  to  what  he  deemed  his  duty, 
his  imperturbable  courage,  his  prudence  and  his  ad- 
dress, well  fitted  him  for  the  critical  mission.  His 
journals,  written  in  a  style  of  quaint  simplicity,  are 
full  of  lively  details,  and  afford  a  minute  and  graphic 
picture  of  forest  life  and  character.  He  left  Phila- 
delphia in  July,  attended  by  a  party  of  friendly  In- 
dians, on  whom  he  relied  for  protection.  Reaching 
the  Ohio,  he  found  himself  beset  with  incalculsblo 
perils  from  the  jealousy  and  malevolence  of  th«  sav- 
age  warriors,  and   the   machinations   of  the   French, 


CiiAP.V.]    THE  DELAWARES  AND  SHAWANOES. 


129 


»g 


who  would  gladly  have  destroyed  him.^  Yet  he  found 
friends  wherever  he  went,  and  finally  succeeded  in 
(3onvincing  the  Indians  that  their  true  interest  lay  in 
a  strict  neutrality.  "When,  therefore,  Forbes  appeared 
before  Fort  du  Quesue,  the  French  found  themselves 


1  The  Ibllowing  are  extracts  from 
Ills  jcarniis :  — 

"We  set  out  from  Kushkushkce 
for  Sankonk ;  my  company  coiisisted 
of  tweiity-five  horsemen  and  fifteen 
foot.  We  arrived  at  Sankonk  in  the 
afternoon.  The  people  of  the  town 
were  much  disturbed  at  my  coming, 
and  received  me  in  a  very  rough  man- 
ner. They  surrounded  me  with  drawn 
knives  in  their  hands,  in  such  a  man- 
ner tliat  I  could  hardly  get  along; 
running  up  against  me  with  their 
breasts  open,  as  if  they  wanted  some 
pretence  to  kill  me.  I  saw  by  their 
countenances  they  sought  my  death. 
Their  faces  were  quite  distorted  with 
rage,  and  they  went  so  far  as  to  say, 
I  should  not  live  long ;  but  some  In- 
dians, with  whom  I  was  formerly  ac- 
quainted, coming  up  and  saluting  me 
in  a  friendly  manner,  their  behavior 
to  me  was  quickly  changed."  .... 
"  Some  of  my  party  desired  me  not  to 
stir  from  the  fire,  for  that  the  French 
had  ofTerod  a  ffreat  reward  for  my 
scalp,  and  that  there  were  several  par- 
ties out  en  that  purpose.  Accordingly 
I  stuck  constantly  as  close  to  the  fire 
as  if  I  had  been  chained  there 

"  In  the  afternoon,  all  the  captains 
gathered  together  in  the  middle  town ; 
they  sent  for  us,  and  desired  we  should 
give  them  information  of  our  message. 
Accordingly  we  did.  We  read  uie 
message  with  great  satisfaction  to 
tlicm.  It  was  a  great  pleasure  both 
to  them  and  us.  The  number  of  cap- 
tains and  counsellors  were  sixteen. 
In  the  evening,  messengers  arrived 
from  Fort  Duquesne,  with  a  string 
of  wampum  from  the  commander; 
ui  )n  which  they  all  came  togetlicr 
in  the  house  where  wo  lodged.  The 
messengers  delivered  their  8tring,with 
tliese  words  from  tlieir  father,  the 
French  king :  — 

17 


"  *  My  children,  come  to  me,  and 
hear  what  I  have  to  say.  The  Eng- 
lish are  coming  with  an  army  to  de- 
stroy both  you  and  me.  I  therefore 
dosire  you  imm  Uately,  my  children, 
to  hasten  with  ah  i.ie  young  men  ;  we 
will  drive  the  English  and  destroy 
them.  I,  as  a  father,  will  tell  you 
always  what  is  best.'  He  laid  the 
string  before  one  of  the  captains. 
After  a  little  conversation,  the  captain 
stood  up,  and  said, '  I  have  just  heard 
something  of  our  brethren,  the  Eng- 
lish, which  pleaseth  me  much  better. 
I  will  not  go.  Give  it  to  the  others  ; 
maybe  they  will  go.'  The  messenger 
took  up  again  the  string,  and  said, 
'  He  won't  go ;  he  has  heard  of  the 
English.'  Then  all  cried  out,  'Yes, 
yes,  we  have  heard  from  the  Eng- 
lish.' He  then  threw  the  string  to 
the  otlier  fire-place,  where  the  other 
captains  were;  but  they  kicked  it 
from  one  to  another,  as  if  it  was  a 
snake.  Captain  Peter  took  a  stick, 
and  witli  it  flung  the  string  from  one 
end  of  the  room  to  the  other,  and 
said,  'Give  it  to  the  French  captain, 
and  let  him  go  with  his  young  men ; 
he  boasted  much  of  his  fighting ;  now 
let  us  see  his  fighting.  We  Iiave  often 
ventured  our  lives  for  him ;  and  had 
hardly  a  loaf  of  bread  when  we  came 
to  him ;  and  now  he  thinks  wo  should 
jump  to  serve  him.'  Then  we  saw 
the  French  captain  mortifie<I  to  tlio 
uttermost ;  he  looked  as  pale  as  doatli. 
The  Indians  discoursed  and  joked  till 
midnight;  and  the  French  captain 
sent  messengers  at  midnight  to  Fort 
Duquesne." 

The  kicking  about  of  the  wampum 
belt  is  the  usual  indication  of  contempt 
for  the  message  of  which  the  bolt  is 
tiie  token.  The  uses  of  wampum  will 
he  described  hereafter. 


130 


THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.        [Cuap.  V. 


abandoned  to  their  own  resource8 ;  and,  unable  to  hold 
their  ground,  they  retreated   down  the  Ohio,  leaving 
the  fort  an  easy  conquest  to  the  invaders.     During 
the  autumn,  the  Ohio  Indians  sent  their  deputies  to 
Easton,  where  a  great  council  was  held,  and  a  formal 
peace  concluded  with  the  provinces.*       ^   ■   ;i-t>v,  .     : 
While  the  friendship  of  these  tribes  was  thus  lost 
and  regained,  their  ancient   tyrants,  the  Iroquois,  re- 
mained in  a   state  of  loose   and  critical  attachment. 
At   the   outbreak  of  the  war,  they  had   shown,  it  is 
true,  many  signs  of  friendship;''  but  the  disasters  of 
the  first  campaign  had  given  them  but  a  contemptible 
idea  of  British  prowess.     This  impression  was  deep- 
ened, when,  on  the  following  year,  they  saw  Oswego 
taken  by  the  French,  and  the  British  general,  Webb, 
retreat  with  dastardly  haste  from  an  enemy  who  did 
not  dream  of  piu'suing  him.     At  this  time,  some  of 
the  confederates  actually  took  up  the  hatchet  on  the 
side  of  France,   and  there  was  danger  that  the  rest 
might  follow  their  example.^    But  now  a  new  dement 
was  infused  into  the  Pritish  counsels.     The  fortunes 
of  the  conflict  began  to  change.     Du  Quesne  and  Lou- 
isburg  were  taken,  and  the  Iroquois  conceived  a  better 
opinion  of  the  British  arms.     Their  friendship  was  no 
longer  a  matter  of  doubt;  and  in  1760,  when  Amherst 
was  preparing  to  advance  on   Montreal,  the  warriors 
flocked  to  his  camp  like  vultures  to  the  expected  car- 
cass.    Yet  there  is  little  doubt,  that,  had  their  sachems 
and  orators  followed  the  dictates  of  their  cooler  judg- 
ment, they  would  not  have  aided  in  destroying  Canada ; 
for  they  could  see  that  in  tlie  colonies  of  France  lay 

1  Minutes  of  Council  at  Easton,  the  Chief  Sachems  and  Warriors  of 
17.58.  tlie  Six  Nations,  (Lond.  175().) 

2  Account  of  Conferences  between  3  MS.  Johnson  Papers. 
Major  General  Sir  W.  JohriHon.  and 


n 


Chap.  V.] 


WESTERN  TRIBES  — THE  FOREST. 


131 


the  only  barrier  against  the  growing  power  and  ambi- 
tion of  the  English  provinces. 

The  Hurons  of  Lorette,  the  Abenakis,  and  other 
domiciliated  tribes  of  Canada  ranged  themselves  on  the 
side  of  France  throughout  the  war,  and  at  its  conclu- 
sion, they,  in  common,  with  the  Canadians,  may  be  re- 
garded in  the  light  of  a  conquered  people. 

The  numerous  tribes  of  the  remote  west  had,  with 
few  exceptions,  played  the  part  of  active  allies  of  the 
French ;  and  warriors  might  be  found  on  the  farthest 
shores  of  Lake  Superior  who  garnished  their  war-dress 
with  the  scalp-locks  of  murdered  Englishmen.  With 
the  conquest  of  Canada,  these  tribes  subsided  into  a 
state  of  passive  inaction,  which  was  not  destined  long 
to  continue.  '/^^  h  ;;,:m''-'  '"-■■'f-  ^- -  ■  *\vr.-r-: .  ^ -     .'■<.■. 

And  now,  before  launching  into  the  story  of  that 
sanguinary  war,  which  forms  our  proper  and  immediate 
theme,  it  will  be  well  to  survey  the  grand  arena  of  the 
strife,  the  goodly  heritage  which  the  wretched  tribes 
of  the  forest  struggled  to  retrieve  from  the  hands  of 
the  spoiler. 

One  vast,  continuous  forest  shadowed  the  fertile  soil, 
covering  the  land  as  the  grass  covers  a  garden  lawn, 
sweeping  over  hill  and  hollow  in  endless  undulation, 
burying  mountains  in  verdure,  and  mantling  brooks 
and  rivers  from  the  light  of  day.  Green  intervals 
dotted  with  browsing  deer,  and  broad  plains  blackened 
with  buffalo,  broke  the  sameness  of  the  woodland 
scenery.  Unnumbered  rivers  seamed  the  forest  with 
their  devious  windings.  Vast  lakes  washed  its  bounda- 
ries, where  the  Indian  voyager,  in  his  birch  canoe,  could 
descry  no  land  beyond  the  world  of  waters.  Yet  this 
prolific  wilderness,  teeming  with  waste  fertility,  was  but 
a  hunting-ground  and   a  battle-field  to  a  few  fierce 


rn' 


(1  f 


1  ■ 


"  (*. 


1  ■    1 


132 


THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.       [Chap.  V. 


hordes  of  savages.  Here  and  there,  in  some  rich 
meadow  opened  to  the  sun,  the  Indian  squaws  turned 
the  black  mould  with  their  rude  implements  of  bone 
or  iron,  and  sowed  their  scanty  stores  of  maiz.n  and 
beans.  Human  labor  drew  no  other  tribute  from  that 
inexhaustible  soil. 

So  thin  and  scattered  was  the  native  popidation,  that, 
even  in  those  parts  which  were  thought  well  peopled, 
one  might  sometimes  journey  for  days  together  through 
the  twilight  forest,  and  meet  no  human  form.  Broad 
tracts  were  left  in  solitude.  All  Kentucky  was  a  va- 
cant waste,  a  mere  skinnishing  ground  for  the  hostile 
war-parties  of  the  north  and  south.  A  great  part  of 
Upper  Canada,  of  Michigan,  and  of  Illinois,  besides 
other  portions  of  the  west,  were  tenanted  by  wild 
beasts  alone.  To  form  a  close  estunate  of  the  num- 
hns  of  the  erratic  bands  who  roamed  this  wUdeniess 
would  be  a  vain  attempt ;  but  it  may  be  affirmed  that, 
between  the  Mississippi  on  the  west  and  the  ocean  on 
the  east,  between  the  Ohio  on  the  south  and  Lake 
Superior  rn  the  north,  the  whole  Indian  population,  at 
the  close  of  the  French  war,  did  not  greatly  exceed  ten 
thousand  fighting  men.  Of  these,  following  the  state- 
ment of  Sir  William  Johnson,  in  1763,  the  Iroquois 
had  nineteen  bundled  and  fifty,  the  Delawares  about 
six  hundred,  the  Shawanoes  about  three  hundred,  the 
Wyandots  about  four  hundred  and  fifty,  and  the  Miami 
tribes,  with  their  neighbors  the  Kickapoos,  eight  hun- 
dred ;  while  the  Ottawas,  the  Ojibwas,  and  other  wan- 
dering  tribes   of  the  north,  defy  all   efforts  at  enu- 


meration. 


•.if-'-v 


1  The  estimates  given  by  Cro-  But  the  discrepancy  is  no  greater 
ghan,  Bouquet,  and  Hutchins,  do  not  than  might  have  been  exiwcted  from 
quite  accord  with  that  of  Johnson,    the  difficulties  of  the  case. 


Chap.  V.] 


NATIVE  POPULATION. 


133 


A  close  survey  of  the  condition  of  the  tribes  at  this 
period  will  detect  some  signs  of  improvement,  but  many 
more  of  degeneracy  and  decay.  To  commence  with 
the  Iroquois,  for  to  them  with  justice  the  priority  be- 
longs: Onondaga,  the  ancient  capital  of  their  confed- 
eracy, where  their  council-fire  had  burned  from  imme- 
morial time,  was  now  no  longer  what  it  had  been  in 
the  days  of  its  greatness,  when  Count  Frontenac  had 
mustered  all  Canada  to  assail  it.  The  thickly-clustered 
dwellings,  with  their  triple  rows  of  palisades,  had  van- 
ished. A  little  stream,  twisting  along  the  valley, 
choked  up  with  logs  and  driftwood,  and  half  hidden 
by  woods  and  thickets,  some  forty  houses  of  bark,  scat- 
tered along  its  ban'^s,  amid  rank  grass,  neglected  clumps 
of  bushes,  and  ragged  patches  of  com  and  peas,  —  such 
was  Onondaga  when  Bartram  saw  it,  and  such,  no 
doubt,  it  remained  at  the  time  of  which  I  write.^  Con- 
spicuous among  the  other  structures,  and  distinguished 
only  by  its  superior  size,  stood  the  great  council-house, 
whose  bark  walls  had  often  sheltered  the  congregated 
wisdom  of  the  confederacy,  and  heard  the  highest 
efforts  of  forest  eloquence.  The  other  villages  of  the 
Iroquois  resembled  Onondaga ;  for  though  several  were 
of  larger  size,  yet  none  retained  those  defensive  stock- 
ades which  had  once  protected  them.^  From  their  Euro- 
pean neighl  ors  the  Iroquois  had  borrowed  many  appli- 
ances of  comfort  and  subsistence.  Horses,  s\  Jie,  and  in 
some  instances  cattle,  were  to  be  found  among  them. 
Guns  and  gunpowder  aided  them  in  the  chase.  Knives, 
hatchets,  kettles,  and  hoes  of  ii-on,  had  supplanted  their 


•»••- 


'r;> 


m 


..ri'- 
II 

^1 


1  Bartram,  Observations,  41. 

3  I  am  indebted  to  the  kindness 
of  Rev.  S.  K.  Lothrop  for  a  copy  of 
tlic  journal  of  Mr.  Kirkland  on  his 


missionary  tour  among  the  Iroquois 
in  17(j5.  The  journal  contains  much 
information  respecting  their  manners 
and  condition  at  tliis  period. 


134 


THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.       [Chap.  V. 


rude  household  utensils  and  implements  of  tillage; 
but  with  all  this,  English  whiskey  had  more  than  can- 
celled every  benefit  which  English  civilization  had 
conferred. 

High  up  the  Susquehanna  were  seated  the  Nanti- 
cokes,  Conoys,  and  Mohicans,  with  a  portion  of  the 
Delawares.  Detached  bands  of  the  western  Iroquois 
dwelt  upon  the  head  waters  of  the  Alleghany,  mingled 
with  their  neighbors,  the  Delawares,  who  had  several 
villages  upon  this  stream.  The  great  body  of  the  latter 
nation,  however,  lived  upon  the  Beaver  Creeks  and  the 
Muskingum,  in  numerous  scattered  towns  and  hamlets, 
whose  barbarous  names  it  is  useless  to  record.  Squalid 
log  cabins  and  conical  wigwams  of  bark  were  clustered 
at  random,  or  ranged  to  form  rude  streets  and  squares. 
Starveling  horses  grazed  on  the  neighboring  meadows ; 
girls  and  children  bathed  and  laughed  in  the  adjacent 
river;  warriors  smoked  their  pipes  in  haughty  indo- 
lence; squaws  labored  in  the  cornfields,  or  brought 
fagots  irom  the  forest,  and  shrivelled  hags  screamed 
from  lodge  to  lodge.  In  each  village  one  large  build- 
ing stood  prominent  among  the  rest,  devoted  to  pur- 
poses of  public  meeting,  dances,  festivals,  and  the 
entertainment  of  strangers.  Thither  the  traveller 
would  be  conducted,  seated  on  a  bear-skin,  and  plenti- 
fully regaled  with  hominy  and  venison. 

The  Shawanoes  had  fixed  their  abode  upon  the 
Scioto  and  its  branches.  Farther  towards  the  west, 
on  the  waters  of  the  Wabash  and  the  Maumee,  dwelt 
the  Miamis,  who,  less  exposed,  from  their  position,  to 
the  poison  of  the  whiskey  keg,  and  the  example  of 
debauched  traders,  retained  their  ancient  charartcr  and 
customs  in  greater  purity  than  their  eastern  neighbors. 
This  cannot  be  said  of  the  Illinois,  who  dwelt  near  the 


Chaf.  v.]  THOROUGHFARES  OF  THE  FOREST. 


135 


borders  of  the  Mississippi,  and  who,  having  lived  for 
more  than  half  a  century  in  close  contact  with  the 
French,  had  become  a  corrupt  and  degenerate  race. 
The  Wyandots  of  Sandusky  and  Detroit  far  surpassed 
the  surroimding  tribes  in  energy  of  character  and 
social  progress.  Their  log  dwellings  were  strong  and 
commodious,  their  agriculture  was  very  considerable, 
their  name  stood  high  in  war  and  policy,  and  by  all 
the  adjacent  Indians  they  were  regarded  with  deference. 
It  is  needless  to  pursue  farther  this  catalogue  of  tribes, 
since  the  position  of  each  will  appear  hereafter  as  they 
advance  in  turn  upon  the  stage  of  action. 

The  English  settlements  lay  like  a  narrow  strip  be- 
tween the  wildemes  1  and  the  sea,  and,  as  the  sea  had 
its  ports,  so  also  tl>  ^  forest  h»id  its  places  of  rendezvous 
and  outfit.  Of  these,  by  m  the  most  important  in  the 
northern  provinces  wa,  the  frontier  city  of  Albany. 
From  thence  it  v  ^i  ';hat  traders  ;  nd  soldiers,  bound  to 
the  country  of  1  le  jiroquois,  or  the  more  distant  wilds 
of  the  interior,  set  out  upon  their  arduous  journey. 
Embarking  in  a  bateau  or  a  canoe,  rowed  by  those 
hardy  men  w^ho  earned  their  livelihood  in  this  service, 
the  traveller  wotdd  ascend  the  Mohawk,  passing  the 
old  Dutch  town  of  Schenectady,  the  two  seats  of  Sir 
William  Johnson,  Fort  Hunter  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Schoharie,  and  Fort  Herkimer' at  the  German  Flats, 
until  he  reached  Fort  Stanwix  at  the  head  of  the  river 
navija-'on.  Then  crossing  over  land  to  Wood  Creek, 
he  would  follow  its  tortuous  course,  overshadowed  by 
the  dense  forest  on  its  banks,  until  he  arrived  at  the 
little  fortification  called  the  Royal  Blockhouse,  and  the 
waters  of  the  Oneida  Lake  spread  before  him.  Cross- 
ing to  its  western  extremity,  and  passing  under  the 
wooden  ramparts  of  Fort  Brewerton,  he  would  descend 


I 


I 

U'i 

tl'    ¥>« 

'     111'  tc , 


:     •»» 


136 


TIIE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.       [Chap.  V. 


the  River  Oswego  to  Oswego,*  on  the  banks  of  Lake 
Ontario.  Here  the  vast  navigation  of  the  Great  Lakes 
would  be  open  before  him,  interrupted  only  by  the 
difficult  portage  at  the  Cataract  of  Niagara.  \ 
•  The  chief  thoroughfare  from  the  middle  colonies  to 
the  Indian  country  was  from  Philadelphia  westward, 
across  the  Alleghanies,  to  the  valley  of  the  Ohio. 
Peace  was  no  sooner  concluded  with  the  hostile  tribes, 
than  the  adventurous  fur-traders,  careless  of  risk  to  life 
and  property,  hastened  over  the  mountains,  each  eager 
to  be  foremost  in  the  wilderness  market.  Their  mer- 
chandise was  sometimes  carried  in  wagons  as  far  as 
the  site  of  Fort  du  Quesne,  which  the  English  rebuilt 
after  its  capture,  changing  its  name  to  Fort  Pitt.  From 
this  point  the  goods  were  packed  on  the  backs  of 
horses,  and  thus  distributed  among  the  various  Indian 
villages.  More  commonly,  however,  the  whole  journey 
was   performed  by  means  of  trains,  or,  as  they  were 


1  MS,  Journal  of  Lieutenant  Go- 
rell,  17(53.  Anonymous  MS.  Journal 
of  a  Toi-r  to  Niagara  in  17(»5.  The 
follov.ing  is  an  extract  from  the 
latter :  — 

"July  2d.  Dined  with  Sir  Wm. 
at  Joimson  Hall.  The  office  of 
Superintendent  very  troublesome. 
Sir  VVm.  continually  plagued  with 
Indians  about  him  —  generally  from 
300  to  900  in  number — spoil  his 
curden,  and  keep  his  house  always 
dirty.    .    .    . 

"  10th.  Punted  and  rowed  up  the 
Mohawk  Rivor  against  the  stream, 
wiiich,  on  account  of  the  rapidity  of 
tlio  current,  is  very  hard  work  for 
the  poor  soldiers.  Encamped  on  tlio 
banks  of  the  River,  about  9  miles 
from  Ilarkimer's. 

"  The  inconveniences  attending  a 
married  Subaltern  strongly  appear  in 
this  tour.  What  with  the  sickness 
of  their  wives,  the  sijuealing  of  their 
children,  and  tiie  smaiincss  of  tiieir 


pay,  I  think  the  gentlemen  discover 
no  common  share  of  philosophy  in 
keeping  themselves  from  running 
mad.  Officers  and  soldiers,  wiiii 
their  wives  and  children,  legitimate 
and  illegitimate,  make  altogether  a 
pretty  compound  oglio,  which  does 
not  tend  towards  showing  military 
matrimony  off  to  any  great  advan- 
tage.   .    .    . 

"  Monday,  14th.  Went  on  horse- 
back by  the  side  of  Wood  Creek  yo 
miles,  to  the  Royal  Blockhouse,  a 
kind  of  wooden  castle,  proof  against 
any  Indian  attacks.  It  is  now  aban- 
doned by  the  troops,  and  a  Sutler 
lives  there,  who  keeps  rum,  milk, 
rackoons,  etc.,  which,  though  none 
of  the  most  elegant,  n  comtbrtablc 
to  Btmngers  passing  that  way.  Tim 
Blockhouse  is  situated  on  the  cutit 
end  of  the  Oneida  Lake,  and  is  sur- 
rounded by  the  Oneida  Indians,  oiio 
of  tlie  Six  Nations." 


CiiAP.  v.] 


THE  FOREST  TRAVELLER. 


137 


called,  brigades  of  packhorses,  which,  leaving  the  fron- 
tier settlements,  climbed  the  shadowy  heights  of  the 
Alleghanies,  and  threaded  the  forests  of  the  Ohio, 
diving  through  thickets,  and  wading  over  streams. 
The  men  employed  in  this  perilous  calling  were  a 
rough,  bold,  and  intractable  class,  often  as  fierce  and 
truculent  as  the  Indians  themselves.  A  blanket  coat, 
or  a  frock  of  smoked  deiL-skin,  a  rifle  on  the  shoulder, 
and  a  knife  and  tomahawk  in  the  belt,  formed  their 
ordinary  equipment.  The  principal  trader,  the  owner 
of  the  merchandise,  would  fix  his  head-quarters  at  some 
large  Indian  town,  whence  he  would  despatch  his  subor- 
dinates to  the  surrounding  villages,  with  a  suitable  sup- 
ply of  blankets  and  red  cloth,  guns  and  hatchets,  liquor, 
tobacco,  paint,  beads,  and  hawk's  bells.  This  wild  traffic 
was  liable  to  every  species  of  disorder ;  and  it  is  not  to 
be  wondered  at  that,  in  a  region  where  law  was  un- 
known, the  jealousies  of  rival  traders  should  become 
a  fruitful  source  of  broils,  robberies,  and  murders. 

In  the  backwoods,  all  land  travelling  was  on  foot,  or 
on  horseback.  It  v/as  no  easy  matter  for  a  novice,  em- 
barrassed with  his  cumbrous  gun,  to  urge  his  horse 
through  the  thick  trunks  and  undergrowth,  or  even  to 
ride  at  speed  along  the  narrow  Indian  trails,  where,  at 
every  yard,  the  impending  branches  switched  him  across 
tlie  face.  At  night,  the  camp  would  be  formed  by  the 
side  of  some  rivulet  or  spring,  and,  if  the  traveller  was 
skilfid  in  the  use  of  his  rifle,  a  haunch  of  venison 
would  often  fonn  his  evening  meal.  If  it  rained,  a 
slied  of  elm  or  bass  wood  bark  was  the  ready  work  of  an 
hour,  a  pile  of  evergreen  boughs  formed  a  bed,  and  the 
saddle  or  the  knapsack  a  pillow.  A  party  of  Indian 
wayfarers  woidd  often  be  met  journeying  through  the 
forest,  a  cliief,  or  a  warrior,  perhaps,  with  his  squaws 
18  *  L* 


^. 


■< 


I;. 


,  ,  fc;.  -da  j 

■  *4 


M 


•J 


t  it 


138 


THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.       [Chap.  V. 


Chap.  V.l 


»nd  family.  The  Indians  would  usually  make  their 
camp  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  white  men ;  and  at 
meal  time  the  warrior  would  seldom  fail  to  seat  himself 
by  the  traveller's  fire,  and  gaze  with  solemn  gravity  at 
the  viands  before  him.  If,  when  the  repast  was  over, 
a  fragment  of  bread  or  a  cup  of  coffee  should  be 
handed  to  him,  he  would  receive  these  highly-prized 
rarities  with  a  deep  ejaculation  of  gratitude ;  for  noth- 
ing is  more  remarkable  in  the  character  of  this  people 
than  the  union  of  inordinate  pride  and  a  generous  love 
of  glory  with  the  mendicity  of  a  beggar  or  a  child. 

He  who  wished  to  visit  the  remoter  tribes  of  the 
Mississippi  valley — an  attempt,  however,  which,  until 
several  years  after  the  conquest  of  Canada,  no  English- 
man could  have  made  without  great  risk  of  losing 
his  scalp  —  would  find  no  easier  course  than  to  descend 
the  Ohio  in  a  canoe  or  bateau.  He  migll^,  float  for 
more  than  eleven  hundred  miles  down  this  liquid 
highway  of  the  wilderness,  and  except  the  deserted 
cabins  of  Logstown,  a  little  below  Fort  Pitt,  the 
remnant  of  a  Shawanoe  village  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Scioto,  and  an  occasional  hamlet  or  solitary  wigwam 
along  the  luxuriant  banks,  he  would  discern  no  trace 
of  human  habitancy  through  all  this  vast  extent. 
The  body  of  the  Indian  population  lay  to  the  north- 
ward, about  the  waters  of  the  tributary  streams.  It 
behoved  the  voyager  to  observe  a  sleepless  caution 
and  hawk-eyed  vigilance.  Sometimes  his  anxious 
scrutiny  would  detect  a  faint  blue  smoke  stealinf>- 
upwai-d  above  the  green  bosom  of  the  forest,  and 
betraying  the  encamping  place  of  some  lurking  war- 
party.  Then  the  canoe  would  be  drawn  in  haste  be- 
neath the  overhanging  bushes  which  skirted  the  shore ; 
nor  would  the  voyage  be  resumed  until  darkiicss  closed, 


Chap.  V.] 


THE  FOHEST  TRAVELLER. 


139 


when  the  little  vessel  would  drift  swiftly  and  safely 
past  the  point  of  danger.^ 

Within  the  nominal  limits  of  the  Illinois  Indians, 
and  towards  the  southern  extremity  of  the  present 
state  of  Illinois,  were  those  isolated  Canadian  settle- 
ments, which  had  subsisted  here  since  the  latter  part 
of  the  previous  century.  Kaskaskia,  Cahokia,  and 
Vincennes  were  the  centres  of  this  scattered  popula- 
tion. From  Vincennes  one  might  paddle  his  canoe 
northward  up  the  Wabash,  untU  he  reached  the  little 
wooden  fort  of  Ouatanon.  Thence  a  path  through 
the  woods  led  to  the  baiiks  of  the  Maumee.  Two 
or  three  Canadians,  or  half  breeds,  of  whom  there  were 
numbers  about  the  fort,  would  carry  the  canoe  on  their 
shoulders,  or,  for  a  bottle  of  whiskey,  a  few  Miami 
Indians  might  be  bribed  to  undertake  the  task.  On 
the  Maumee,  at  the  end  of  the  path,  stood  Fort  Mi- 
ami, near  the  spot  where  Fort  Wayne  was  after- 
wards built.  From  this  point  one  might  descend  the 
Maumee  to  Lake  Erie,  and  visit  the  neighboring  fort 
of  Sandusky,  or,  if  he  chose,  steer  through  the  Strait 
of  Detroit,  and  explore  the  watery  wastes  of  the 
northern  lakes,  finding  occasional  harborage  at  the 
little  military  posts  which  commanded  their  impor- 
tant points.  Most  of  these  western  posts  were  trans- 
ferred to  the  English,  during  the  uutumn  of  1760; 
but  the  settlements  of  the  Illinois  remained  several 
years  longer  under  French  coxitrol. 

Eastward,  on  the  waters  of  Lake  Erie  and  the      ' 


% 


C^"i 


-  p.: 

!  It* 

;  j  :* 

; ;  f 


1  Mitchell,  Contest  in  America. 
Pouchot,  Guerre  de  I'Amerique. 
Ijutchins,  Expedition  against  the 
Ohio  Indians,  appendix.  Hutchins, 
Topographical  Description  of  Vir- 
ginia, etc.  Pownall,  Topographical 
Description  of  North  America.  Ev- 
ans, Analysis  of  a  Map  of  the  Mid- 


dle British  Colonies.  Beatty,  JoiT-nal 
of  a  Tour  in  America.  Smith,  Nar- 
rative. M'CuUough,  Narrative.  Jera- 
mison,  Narrative.  Post,  Journals. 
Washington,  Journals,  IT.W-ITTO. 
Gist,  Journal,  1750.  Croghan,  Jou. ' 
nal,  1765,  etc.,  etc. 


140 


THE  WILDERNESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.        [Chap.  V. 


leghany,  stood  three  small  forts,  Presqu'Isle,  Le  Bceiif, 
and  Venango,  which  had  passed  into  the  hands  of 
the  English  soon  after  the  capture  of  Fort  du  Quesne. 
The  feeble  garrisons  of  all  these  western  posts,  exiled 
from  civilization,  lived  in  the  solitude  of  military  her- 
mits. Through  the  long,  hot  days  of  summer,  and 
,  the  protracted  cold  of  winter,  time  hung  heavy  on 
their  hands.  Their  resources  of  emjiloyment  and  rec- 
reation were  few  and  meagre.  They  found  partners 
in  their  loneliness  among  the  young  beauties  of  the 
Indian  camps.  They  hunted  and  fished,  shot  at  tar- 
gets, and  played  at  games  of  chance;  and  when,  by 
good  fortune,  a  traveller  found  his  way  among  them, 
he  was  greeted  with  a  hearty  and  open-handed  wel- 
come, and  plied  with  eager  questions  touching  the 
great  world  from  which  they  were  banished  men. 
Yet,  tedious  as  it  was,  their  secluded  life  was  seasoned 
with  stirring  danger.  The  surromiding  forests  were 
peopled  with  a  race  dark  and  subtle  as  their  own 
sunless  mazes.  At  any  hour,  those  jealous  tribes 
might  raise  the  war-cry.  No  human  foresight  could 
predict  the  sallies  of  their  fierce  caprice,  and  in  cease- 
less watching  lay  the  only  safety. 

When  the  European  and  the  savage  are  brought 
in  contact,  both  are  gainers,  and  both  are  losers.  Tlie 
former  loses  the  refinements  of  civilization,  but  he 
gains,  in  the  rough  schooling  of  the  wilderness,  a  proud 
independence,  a  self-sustaining  energy,  and  powers  of 
action  and  perception  before  unthought  of  The  sav- 
age gains  new  means  of  comfort  and  support,  cloth, 
iron,  and  gunpowder ;  yet  these  apparent  benefits 
have  often  proved  but  instruments  of  ruin.  They 
soon  become  necessities,  and  the  unhappy  hunter,  for- 
ffcttins:  the  weapons  of  liis  fathers,  must  thenceforth 


Chap.  V.] 


HUNTERS  AND  TRAPPERS. 


141 

and 


depend  on   the  white  man  for  ease,   happiness 
life  itself. 

Those  rude  and  hardy  men,  hunters  and  traders, 
scouts  and  guides,  who  ranged  the  woods  beyond  the 
English  borders,  and  fon  led  a  connecting  link  be- 
tween barbarism  and  civilization,  have  been  touched 
upon  already.  They  were  a  distinct,  peculiar  class, 
marked  with  striking  contrasts  of  good  and  evil. 
Many,  though  by  no  means  all,  were  coarse,  auda- 
cious, and  unscrupulous;  yet,  even  in  the  worst,  one 
might  often  have  found  u  vigorous  growth  of  warlike 
virtues,  ah  iron  endurance,  an  undespairing  courage,  a 
wondrous  sagacity,  and  singular  fertility  of  resource. 
In  them  was  renewed,  with  all  its  ancient  energy, 
that  wild  and  daring  spirit,  that  force  and  hardihood 
of  mind,  which  marked  our  barbarous  ancestors  of 
Germany  and  Norway.  These  sons  of  the  wilderness 
stUl  survive.  We  may  find  them  to  this  day,  not  in 
the  valley  of  the  Ohio,  nor  on  the  shores  of  the 
lakes,  but  far  westward  on  the  desert  range  of  the 
buffalo,  and  among  the  solitudes  of  Oregon.  Even 
now,  Avhile  I  write,  some  lonely  trapper  is  climbing 
the  perilous  defiles  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  his 
strong  frame  cased  in  time-woni  buck-skin,  his  rifle 
griped  in  his  sinewy  hand.  Keenly  he  peers  from 
side  to  side,  lest  Blackfoot  or  Arapahoe  should  am- 
buscade his  path.  The  rough  earth  is  his  bed,  a  mor- 
sel of  dried  .neat  and  a  draught  of  water  are  his  food 
and  drink,  and  death  and  danger  his  companions. 
No  anchorite  could  fare  worse,  no  hero  could  dare 
more;  yet  his  wild,  hard  life  has  resistless  chai-ms; 
and,  while  he  can  wieid  a  rifle,  he  will  never  leave  it. 
Go  V  'h  him  to  the  renf^ezvous,  and  he  is  a  stc  o 
more.     Here,  rioting  i  ;    ug  his  comrades,  his  native 


// 


ri 


•  i 

i  '■? 

i  ■ 

1  !*•■  : 


142 


THE  W3LDBENESS  AND  ITS  TENANTS.         [Cha».  V. 


ym 


appetites  break  loose  in  mad  excess,  in  deep  carouse, 
and  desperate  gaming.  Then  follow  close  the  quarrel, 
the  challenge,  the  fight, —  two  rusty  rifles  and  fifty 
yards  of  prairie. 

Tiie  mu'slyig  of  civilization,  placed  in  the  midst  of 
t3i6  forMi,  imd  abandoned  to  his  own  resources,  is 
helpless  as  ttn  ijfe'  t  There  is  no  clew  to  the  laby- 
inwth.  iiewillcBt-  ad  amazed,  he  circles  round  and 
rou' d  in  hopeless  ffanderings.  Despair  and  famine 
make  him  their  prey,  and  unless  the  birds  of  heaven 
ministf'r  to  his  wjtits,  he  dies  in  misery.  Not  so 
tlie  practiiied  woodsman.  To  him,  the  forest  ia  a 
home.  It.  '^nelds  him  food,  shelter,  and  raiment,  and 
he  thivads  .Its  trackless  depths  with  imdeviating  foot. 
To  lure  the  game,  to  circumvent  the  lurking  foe,  to 
guide  his  course  by  the  stars,  the  wind,  the  streams, 
or  the  trees,  —  such  are  the  arts  which  the  white 
man  has  learned  from  the  red.  Often,  indeed,  the 
l>upil  has  outstripped  his  master.  He  can  hunt  as 
well;  he  can  fight  better;  and  yet  there  are  niceties 
of  the  woodsman's  craft  in  which  the  white  man 
must  yield  the  palm  to  his  savage  rival.  Seldom 
can  he  boast,  in  equal  measure,  that  subtlety  of 
sense,  more  akin  to  the  instinct  of  ^rutes  than  to 
human  reason,  which  reads  the  signs  of  the  forest  as 
the  scholar  reads  the  printed  page,  to  which  the 
whistle  of  a  bird  can  speak  clearly  as  the  tongue  of 
man,  and  the  rustle  of  a  leaf  give  knowledge  of  life 
or  death.*    With  us   the   name  of  the   savage   is  a 


1  A  striking  example  of  Indian  water,  a  branch  of  Laramie  Creek, 

ncotenesa  once  came  under  my  obser-  As  we  prepared  to  encamp,  we  ob- 

vation.    Travelline  in  company  with  acrved  tho  ashes  of  a  i   e,  the  foot- 

a 'Canadian  named  Kaymond,  and  un  j5iint«  ,;  'if  v.  isnd  hore's,  and  other 

C"il}illah  Indian,  we  came  at  niifht-  mdi' '  i^iis  that  a  party  had  bwen 

'>i'  to  a  small  stream  called  Cl^ug-  iij  >:;.  ike  spot  not  many  .'.ays  before. 


Chap.  V.] 


THE  EUROPEAN  AND  THE  INDIAN. 


143 


byword  of  reproach.  The  Indian  would  look  with 
equal  srom  on  those,  who,  buried  in  useless  lore,  are, 
blir'l  and  deaf  to  the  great  world  of  nature. 


I'.avine  Becured  our  horses  for  the 
flight,  Raymond  and  I  sat  down  and 
lighted  our  pipes,  my  companion,  who 
had  spent  his  whole  life  in  the  Indian 
country,  hazarding  various  conjec- 
tures as  to  the  numbers  and  charac- 
ter of  our  predecessors.  Soon  after, 
we  were  joined  by  the  Indian,  who, 
meantime,  had  been  prowling  about 
the  place.  Raymond  asked  what 
discovery  he  had  made.  He  an- 
swered,, that  the  party  were  friendly, 
and  that  they  consisted  of  eight  men. 


both  whites  and  Indians,  several  of 
whom  he  named,  affirming  that  he 
knew  them  well.  To  an  inquiry  how 
he  gained  his  information,  he  would 
make  no  intelligible  reply.  On  the 
next  day,  reaching  Fort  Laramie,  a 
post  of  the  American  Fur  Company, 
we  found  that  he  was  correct  in  every 
particular —  a  circumstance  the  more 
remarkable,  as  he  had  been  with  us 
for  three  weeks,  and  could  have  had 
no  other  means  of  knowledge  than 
we  ourselves. 


'  1 


'-» 


:-:M^:f 


i;,",  />j.i;-<^-i4f' 


im 


r,  p%i 

i  M 


i^y 


^HAVti    ^•■': 


.-m/^'v-^-^*^'' 


'--t,,. 


.*    .'vc..'i-'-. 


CHAPTEE    VI. 


THE  ENGUSH  TAKE  POSSESSION  OF  THE  WESTERN 

POSTS. 


fl 


The  war  was  over.  The  plains  around  Montreal 
were  dotted  with  the  white  tents  of  three  victorious 
aimies,  and  the  work  of  conquest  was  complete.  Can- 
ada, with  all  her  dependencies,  had  yielded  to  the 
British  crown ;  but  it  still  remained  to  carry  into  full 
effect  the  terms  of  the  surrender  and  take  possession 
of  those  western  outposts,  where  the  lilies  of  France 
had  not  as  yet  descended  from  the  flagstaflf.  The  execu- 
tion of  this  task,  neither  an  easy  nor  a  safe  one,  was 
assigned  to  a  provincial  officer.  Major  Robert  Rogers. 

Rogers  was  f»  native  of  New  Hampshire.  He  com- 
mandc  d  a  body  of  provincial  rangers,  and  stood  in  high 
repute  as  a  partisan  officer.  Putnam  and  Stark  were 
his  associates;  and  it  was  in  this  woodland  warfare 
that  the  former  achieved  many  of  those  startling  adven- 
tures and  hair-breadth  escapes  which  have  made  his 
name  familiar  at  every  New  England  fireside.  Rogers' 
Rangers,  half  hunters,  half  woodsmen,  trained  in  a 
disciplme  of  their  own,  and  anned,  like  Indians,  with 
hatchet,  knife,  and  gun,  were  employed  in  a  service  of 
peculiar  hardship.  Their  chief  theatre  of  action  was 
the  mountainous  region  of  Lake  George,  the  debatable 
ground  between  the  hostile  forts  of  Ticonderoga  and 
Crown  Point.     The  deepest  recesses  of  these  romantic 


"t  'j'it'i 


Chap.  VI.] 


BOQEBS'  BANQEBS. 


145 


solitudes  had  heard  the  French  and  Indian  yell,  and 
the  answering  shout  of  the  hardy  New  England  men. 
In  summer,  they  passed  down  the  lake  in  whale  boats 
or  canoes,  or  threaded  the  pathways  of  the  woods  in 
single  file,  like  the  savages  themselves.  In  winter,  they 
journeyed  through  the  swamps  on  snowshoes,  skated 
along  the  frozen  surface  of  the  lake,  and  bivouacked 
at  night  among  the  snov  drifts.  They  intercepted 
French  messengers,  encountered  French  scouting  par- 
ties, and  carried  off  prisoners  from  under  the  very  walls 
of  Ticonderoga.  Their  hardships  and  adventures,  their 
marches  and  countermarches,  their  frequent  skirmishes 
and  midwinter  battles,  had  made  them  famous  through- 
out America;  and  though  it  was  the  fashion  of  the 
day  to  sneer  at  the  efforts  of  provincial  troops,  the 
name  of  Rogers'  Rangers  was  never  mentioned  but 
with  honor. 

Their  commander  was  a  man  tall  and  vigorous  in 
person  and  rough  in  feature.  He  was  versed  in  all  the 
arts  of  woodcraft,  sagacious,  prompt,  and  resolute,  yet 
so  cautious  withal  hat  he  sometimes  incurred  the  un- 
just charge  of  cowardi^'f ,  His  mind,  naturally  active, 
was  by  no  ineans  uncul  " .  xed,  and  his  books  and  un- 
published letters  bear  witness  that  his  style  rs  a  writer 
was  not  contemptible.  But  his  vain,  restless,  i»nd 
grasping  spirit,  and  more  than  doubtful  honesty,  pro  • ' 
the  ruin  of  an  enviable  reputation.  Six  yeard  after  the 
expedition  of  which  I  am  about  to  speak,  he  was  tried 
by  a  court-martial  for  a  meditated  act  of  treason,  the 
surrender  of  Fort  ^'^^^^^illimackiiiac  into  the  hands  of 
the  Spaniards,  whv^  v/ere  at  that  time  masters  of  Upper 
Louisiana.^     Not  long  after,  if  we  may  trust  his  own 


^A 


fetntt 


f1^' 


19 


*  MS.  Gage  Papers. 


M 


■M 


146 


TiiK  p:ngli8ii  in  tiie  west. 


[CUAP.  VI. 


^»r 


•V 


account,  ho  passed  over  to  the  Barbary  States,  entered 
the  service  of  the  Dey  of  Algiers,  and  fought  two  bat- 
tles under  his  banners.  At  the  oi)enu^g  of  the  war  of 
independence,  he  returned  to  his  native  country,  where 
he  made  professions  of  patriotism,  but  was  strongly 
suspected  by  many,  including  Washington  himself,  of 
acting  the  part  of  a  spy.  In  fact,  he  soon  openly 
espoused  the  British  cause,  and  received  a  colonel's 
commission  from  the  crown.  His  services,  however, 
proved  of  little  consequence.  In  1778,  he  was  pro- 
scribed and  banished,  under  the  act  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, and  the  remainder  of  his  life  was  passed  in  such 
obscurity  that  it  is  difficult  to  determine  when  and 
where  he  died.*  -        ^-'    >   t 

On  the  twelfth  of  September,  1760,  Eogers,  then     t 


1  Sabine,  American  Loyalists,  ,"7'».  library  of  the  British  Museum.    For 

Sparks,  Writings    of    Washington,  an  accoiiiit  of  this  curious  produc- 

III.  208,  244,  439 ;   IV.  128,  520,  tion,  see  Appendix,  B.    An  engraved 

524.  full-length   jmrtrait  of  Rogers   was 

Although  Rogers,  especially  where  publifshed  in  London  in  1776.    He  is 

his  pec    iry  interest  was  c  i(Terncd,  represented  as  a  tall,  strong  man, 


was  far  .Vom  scrnpulons,  I  u /e  no 
hesitation  in  following  hia  e''  unt 
of  the  expedition  up  the  lakes.  'lie 
incidents  of  each  day  are  minut<>d 
down  in  a  dry,  unambitious  sty! 
bearing  the  clear  impress  of  tn 
Extracts  from  the  orderly  books  una 
other  ofliciu!  papers  are  given,  while 
portions  of  the  narrative,  verified  by 
contemporary  documents,  may  stand 
as  earnests  for  the  truth  of  the  wholu. 
Rogers'  published  works  consist 
of  tlip  Journals  of  his  ranging  ser- 
vice and  his  Concist  Jiccowit  of  North 
jiiiierka,  a  small  volume  containing 
much  valuable  information.  Both 
appeared  in  London  in  17(i5.  To 
'.'  cm:  may  be  added  a  curious  drama, 
called  f onfeacft,  or  the  Savaffes  of 
Jhnerica,  which  appears  to  have  been 
written,  in  part  at  least,  by  him.  It 
is  very  rare,  and  besides  tfie  copy  \n 
my  possession,  I  know  of  but  one 
other,  which  may  be  found  in  the 


dressed  in  Hic  costume  of  a  ranger, 
with  a  r  "  iler-horn  slung  at  his  side, 
a  gun  sting  in  the  hollow  of  his 
arm,  ii'id  a  countenance  by  no  means 
prepossessing.  Behind  him,  at  a  lit- 
tle distance,  stand  his  Indian  fol- 
lower''. 

Tin  teep  mountain  called  Rogers' 
Slid'  r  the  northern  end  of  Lake 
Georg  derives  its  name  from  the 
tradition  that,  during  tlie  French 
war,  being  pui-sued  by  a  party  of 
Indians,  he  slid  on  snowshoes  down 
its  precipitous  front,  for  more  than  a 
thousand  feet,  to  the  frozen  lake  be- 
low. On  beholding  the  achieve- 
ment, the  Indians,  as  well  they  might, 
believed  him  under  the  protection  of 
the  Great  Spirit,  and  gave  over  the 
chase.  The  story  seems  unfounded ; 
yet  it  was  not  far  from  this  mountain 
thrt  the  rangers  fought  one  of  their 
most  desperate  winter  batt  s,  against 
a  force  of  many  times  their  number. 


Chap.  VI.] 


THE  RANGKUS   ON  THE    LAKES. 


147 


the  height  of  his  reputation,  received  orders  from  Sir 
Jeffrey  Amherst  to  ascend  the  lakes  with  a  detachment 
of  rangers,  and  take  i)(jsse8sion,  in  the  name  of  his  Bri- 
tannic Majesty,  of  Detroit,  Michillunackinac,  and  other 
western  posts  included  in  the  late  capitulation.  He 
left  Montreal,  on  the  following  day,  with  two  hundred 
rangers,  in  fifteen  whale  boats.  They  passed  the  chapel 
of  St.  Anne's,  where  Canadian  voyageurs,  bound  for 
the  north-west,  received  absolution  and  paid  their  votive 
offerings.  Stemmuig  the  surges  of  La  Chine  and  the 
Cedars,  they  left  behind  them  the  straggling  .  hamlet 
which  bore  the  latter  name,  and  formed  at  that  day  the 
western  limit  of  Canadian  settlement.^  They  gained 
Lake  Ontario,  skirted  its  northern  shore,  amid  rough 
and  boisterous  weather,  and  crossing  at  its  western 
extremity,  readied  Fort  Niagara  on  the  first  of  October. 
Carrying  their  boats  over  the  portage,  they  laimched 
once  more  above  the  cataract,  and  slowly  pursued  their 
voyage,  while  Rogers,  with  a  few  attendants,  hastened 
on  in  advance  to  Fort  Pitt,  to  deliver  despatches,  with 
which  he  was  charged,  to  General  Monkton.  This 
errand  accomplished,  he  rejoined  his  command  at 
Presqu'Isle,  about  the  end  of  the  month,  and  the  whole 
proceeded  together  along  the  southern  margin  of  Lake 
Erie.  The  season  was  far  advanced.  The  wind  was 
chill,  the  lake  was  stormy,  and  the  woods  on  shore 
were  tinged  with  the  fading  hues  of  autumn.  On  the 
seventh  of  November  they  reached  the  mouth  of  Caya- 
hoga  River,  the  present  site  of  Cleveland.  No  body 
of  troops  undei  the  British  flag  had  ever  before  ad- 
vanced so  fill..  The  day  was  didl  and  rainy,  and  resolv- 
ing to  rest  until  the  weather  should  improve,  Rogers 


1 

m 
> 


.4- 


i  Henry,  Travels  and  Adventures,  9. 


148 


THE  ENGLISH  IN  THE  WEST. 


[CnAF.  VL 


V 


ordcn'i  ik  men  to  prepare  their  enctimpmcnt  in  the 
neighboring  forest.  The  place  has  seen  strange  changes 
since  that  day.  A  youthful  city  has  usurped  the 
spot  where  the  fish-hawk  and  the  eagle,  the  wolf  and 
the  bear,  then  reigned  with  undisputed  mastery. 

Soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  rangers,  a  party  of  In- 
dian chiefs  and  warriors  entered  the  camp.  They  pro- 
claimed themselves  an  embassy  from  Pontiac,  ruler 
of  aU  that  country,  and  directed,  in  liis  name,  that  the 
English  should  advance  no  farther  until  they  had  had 
an  interview  with  the  great  chief,  who  was  already 
close  at  hand.  In  truth,  before  the  day  closed,  Pontiac 
himself  appeared ;  and  it  is  here,  for  the  first  time,  that 
this  remarkable  man  stands  forth  distinctly  on  the  page 
of  history.  He  greeted  Rogers  with  the  haughty  de- 
mand, what  was  his  business  in  that  country,  and  how 
he  dared  enter  it  without  his  permission.  Rogers 
informed  him  that  the  French  were  defeated,  that 
Canada  had  surrendered,  and  that  he  was  on  his  way 
to  take  possession  of  Detroit,  and  restore  a  general 
peace  to  white  men  and  Indians  alike.  Pontiac  listened 
with  attention,  but  only  replied  that  he  should  stand 
in  the  path  of  the  English  until  morning.  Having 
inquired  if  the  strangers  were  in  need  of  any  thing 
which  his  country  could  afford,  he  withdrew,  with  his 
chiefs,  at  nightfall,  to  his  own  encampment ;  while  the 
English,  ill  at  ease,*and  suspecting  treachery,  stood  well 
on  their  guard  throughout  the  night.  "  , 

In  the  morning,  Pontiac  returned  to  the  camp  with 
his  attendant  chiefs,  and  made  his  reply  to  Rogers' 
speech  of  the  previous  day.  He  was  willing,  he  said, 
to  live  at  peace  with  the  English,  and  suffer  them  to 
remain  in  his  country  as  long  as  they  treated  him  with 
due  respect  and  deference.      The  Indian  chiefs  and 


again 
reachet 
heard 
them, 
the  en 


ClIAP.  VI.] 


VIEWS  OF  rONTIAC. 


149 


provinciul  officers  smoked  the  calumet  *    '"ther,  and 
perfect  harmony  seemed  established  betv  :cii.  U  lem.* 

Up  to  this  time,  Pontiac  had  been,  in  ''o;d  and  deed, 
the  fast  ally  of  the  French ;  but  it  is  easy  to  discern 
the  motives  that  impelled  him  to  renounce  his  old  ad- 
herence. The  American  forest  never  produced  a  man 
more  shrewd,  politic,  and  ambitious.  Ignorant  as  he 
was  of  what  was  passing  in  tlie  world,  he  could  clearly 
sec  that  the  French  power  was  on  the  wane,  and  he 
knew  his  own  interest  too  well  to  prop  a  falling  cause. 
By  making  friends  of  the  English,  he  hoped  to  gain 
powerful  allies,  who  would  aid  his  ambitious  projects, 
and  give  him  an  increased  influence  over  the  tribes ; 
and  he  flattered  himself  that  the  new-comers  would 
treat  liim  with  the  same  studied  respect  which  the 
French  had  always  observed.  In  this,  and  all  liis  other 
expectations  of  advantage  from  the  English,  he  was 
doomed  to  disappointment. 

A  cold  storm  of  rain  set  in,  and  the  rangers  were 
detained  some  days  in  their  encampment.  During  this 
time,  Rogers  had  several  interviews  with  Pontiac,  and 
was  constrained  to  admire  the  native  vigor  of  his  in- 
tellect, no  less  than  the  singular  control  which  he  exer- 
cised over  those  around  him.         '■  ^  •  ''  '?  i'   ■   - 

On  the  twelfth  of  November,  the  detachment  was 
again  in  motion,  and  within  a  few  days,  they  had 
reached  the  western  end  of  Lake  Erie.  Here  they 
heard  that  the  Detroit  Indians  were  in  arms  against 
them,  and  that  four  hundred  warriors  lay  in  ambush  at 
the  entrance  of  the  river  to  cut  them  off.  But  the 
powerful  influence  of  PoTitiac  was  exerted  in  behalf  of 
his  new  friends.     The  w  arriors  abandoned  their  design, 

'  Rogers,  Journals,  214.    Account  of  North  America,  340, 243. 

M* 


1    I  r* 

it   ■» 


150 


TIIE  ENGLISH  IN  TIIE  WEST. 


[Chap.  VI 


and  the  rangers  continued  their  progress  towards  De- 
troit, now  within  a  short  distance. 

In  the  mean  time,  Lieutenant  Brehm  had  been  sent 
forward  with  a  letter  to  Captain  Beletre,  the  com- 
mandant at  Detroit,  informing  him  that  Canada  had 
capitulated,  that  his  garrison  was  included  in  the  ca- 
pitulation, and  that  an  English  detachment  was  ap- 
proaching to  relieve  it.  The  Frenchman,  in  great 
wrath  at  the  tidings,  disregarded  the  message  as  an 
informal  communication,  and  resolved  to  keep  a  hos- 
tile attitude  to  the  last.  He  did  his  best  to  rouse 
the  fury  of  the  Indians.  Among  other  deiices,  he 
displayed  upon  a  pole,  before  the  yelling  multitude, 
the  effigy  of  a  crow  pecking  a  man's  head,  the  crow 
representing  himself,  and  the  head,  observes  Kogers, 
"  being  meant  for  my  own."  All  his  efforts  were  un- 
availing, and  his  faithless  allies  showed  unequivocal 
symptoms  of  defection  in  the  hour  of  need. 

Rogers  had  now  entered  the  mouth  c<f  the  River 
Detroit,  whence  he  sent  forward  Captain  Campbell 
with  a  copy  of  the  capitulation,  and  a  letter  from 
the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil,  directing  that  the  place 
sliould  be  given  up,  in  accordance  with  the  tenns 
agreed  upon  between  him  and  General  Amherst.  Be- 
letre was  forced  to  yield,  and  with  a  very  ill  grace 
declared  himself  and  his  garrison  at  the  disposal  of 
the  English  commander. 

The  whale  boats  of  the  rangers  moved  slowly  ui> 
wards  between  the  low  banks  of  the  Detroit,  until 
at  length  the  green  uniformity  of  marsh  and  forest 
was  relieved  by  the  Canadian  houses,  which  began 
to  appear  on  either  bank,  the  outskirts  of  the  se- 
cludcxl  and  isolated  settlement.  B'^fore  tlicm,  on  the 
right  side,  tliey  could  see  the  village  of  the  Wyaiidots, 


f«»:>^ 


Chap.  VI.] 


THE  RANGEKS  AT  DETIIOIT. 


151 


and  on  the  left  the  clustered  lodges  of  the  Potta- 
wattamies,  while,  a  little  beyond,  the  flag  of  France 
was  flying  for  the  last  time  above  the  bark  roofs 
and  weather-beaten  palisades  of  the  little  fortified  town. 

The  rangers  landed  on  the  opposite  bank,  and 
pitched  their  tents  upon  a  meadow,  while  two  offi- 
cers, with  a  small  detachment,  went  across  the  river 
to  take  possession  of  the  place.  In  obedience  to 
their  summons,  the  French  garrison  defiled  upon  the 
plain,  and  laid  down  their  arms.  The  fieur  de  lis 
was  lowered  from  the  flagstaff,  and  the  cross  of  St. 
George  rose  aloft  in  its  place,  whUe  seven  hundicd 
Indian  warriors,  lately  the  active  allies  of  France, 
greeted  the  sight  with  a  burst  of  triumphant  yells. 
The  Canadian  militia  were  next  called  together  and 
disamied.  The  Indians  looked  on  with  amazement 
at  their  obsequious  behavior,  quite  at  a  loss  to  un- 
derstand why  so  many  men  should  humble  themselves 
before  so  few.  Nothing  is  more  effective  in  gaining 
the  respect,  or  even  attachment,  of  Indians  than  a  dis- 
play of  power.  The  savage  spectators  conceived  the 
loftiest  idea  of  English  prowess,  and  were  beyond 
measure  astonished  at  the  forbearance  of  the  conquer- 
ors in  not  killing  their  vanquished  enemies  on  the  spot. 

It  was  on  the  twenty-ninth  of  November,  17()(), 
that  Detroit  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  English.  The 
garrison  wore  sent  as  prisoners  down  the  lake,  but 
the  Canadian  inhabitants  were  allowed  to  retain  tlunr 
faiins  and  houses,  on  condition  of  swearing  alLgiance 
to  the  British  crown.  An  officer  was  sort  southward 
to  take  possession  of  the  forts  Miami  and  Ouatanon, 
which  guarded  the  communication  between  I^ake  Eric 
and  the  Ohio,  while  lingers  himself,  with  a  small 
party,  proceeded  northward  to  relieve  the  French  gar- 


cnl 


M    .f 


^1 


152 


THE  ENGLISH  IN  THE  WEST. 


[Chap.  VI. 


V 


rison  cf  Michillimackinac.  The  storms  and  gathering 
ice  of  Lake  Huron  forced  him  back  wilhout  accom- 
plishing his  object,  and  Michillimackinac,  with  the 
three  remoter  posts  of  St.  Marie,  Green  Bay,  and  St. 
Joseph,  remained  for  the  time  in  the  hands  of  the 
French.  During  the  next  season,  however,  a  detach- 
ment of  the  60th  regiment,  then  called  the  Eoyal 
Americans,  took  possession  of  them ;  and  nothing  now 
remained  within  the  power  of  the  French,  except  the 
few  posts  and  settlements  on  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Wabash,  not  intludod  in  the  capitulation  of  Montreal. 
The  work  of  conquest  was  consummated.  The 
fertile  wilderness  beyond  the  AUeghanies,  over  which 
France  had  claimed  sovereignty,  —  that  boundless  for- 
est, with  its  traceiy  of  interlacing  streams,  which,  like 
veins  and  arteries,  gave  it  life  and  nourishment,  —  had 
passed  into  the  hands  of  her  rival.  It  was  by  a  few 
insignificant  forts,  separated  by  oceans  of  fvesh  water 
and  uncounted  leagues  of  forest,  that  the  two  great 
European  powers,  France  first,  and  now  England,  en- 
deavored to  enforce  their  claims  to  this  vast  and  wUd 
domain.  There  is  something  ludicrous  in  the  disparity 
between  the  importance  of  the  possession  and  the 
slendemess  of  the  force  employed  to  maintain  it.  A 
region  embracing  so  many  thousand  miles  of  surface 
was  consigned  to  the  keeping  of  some  five  or  six 
hundred  men.  Yet  the  force,  small  as  it  was,  ap- 
peared adequate  to  its  object,  for  there  seemed  no 
enemy  to  contend  with.  The  hands  of  the  French 
were  tied  by  the  capitulation,  and  little  apprehension 
was  felt  from  the  red  inhabitants  of  the  woods.  The 
lapse  of  two  years  was  enough  to  show  how  complete 
and  fatal  was  the  mistake. 


y. ,,-«!.. 


.^V;'-.ifa,/;,^- 


^ 


■-..\'-' 


'  CHAPTER    VII. 

ANGER  OP  THE  INDIANS.— THE  CONSPIRACY. 

The  country  was  scarcely  transferred  to  the  Eng- 
lish when  smothered  murmurs  of  discontent  began 
to  be  audible  among  the  Indian  tribes.  From  the 
head  of  the  Potomac  to  Lake  Superior,  and  from 
the  AUeghanies  to  the  Mississippi,  in  every  wigwam 
and  hamlet  of  the  forest,  a  deep-rooted  hatred  of  the 
English  increased  with  rapid  growth.  Nor  is  this  to  be 
wondered  at.  We  have  seen  with  what  sagacious  policy 
the  French  had  labored  to  ingratiate  themselves  with 
the  Indians;  and  the  slaughter  of  the  Monongahela, 
with  the  horrible  devastation  of  the  western  frontier, 
the  outrages  perpetrated  at  Oswego,  and  the  massacre 
at  Fort  William  Henry,  bore  witness  to  the  success 
of  their  efforts.  Even  the  Delawares  and  Shawanoes, 
the  faithful  allies  of  William  Penn,  had  at  length 
fcyen  seduoed  by  their  blandishments;  and  the  Iro- 
quois, the  ancient  enemies  of  Canada,  had  half  for- 
gotten their  former  hostility,  and  well  nigh  taken  part 
against  the  British  colonists.  The  remote  nations  of 
the  west  had  also  joined  in  the  war,  descending  in 
theu'  canoes  for  hundreds  of  miles,  to  fight  against 
the  enemies  of  France.  All  these  tribes  entertained 
towards  the  English  that  rancorous  enmity  which  an 
Indian  always  feels  against  those  to  whom  he  has 
been  opposed  in  war. 
20 


■^i 


154 


ANGER  OH'  THE  INDIANS. 


[ClIAP.  VII. 


Under  these  circumstances,  it  behoved  the  English 
to  use  the  utmost  care  in  their  conduct  towards  the 
tribes.  But  even  when  the  conflict  with  France  was 
impending,  and  the  alliance  with  the  Indians  of  the 
last  importance,  they  had  treated  them  with  indifler- 
ence  and  neglect.  They  were  not  likely  to  adopt  a 
different  course  now  that  their  friendship  seemed  a  mat- 
ter of  no  consequence.  In  truth,  the  intentions  of  the 
EngHsh  were  soon  apparent.  In  the  zeal  for  retrench- 
ment, which  prevailed  a^ter  the  close  of  hostilities, 
the  presents  which  it  had  always  been  customary  to 
give  the  Indians,  at  stated  intervals,  were  either  with- 
hckl  altogether,  or  doled  out  with  a  niggardly  and 
reluctant  hand ;  while,  to  make  the  matter  worse,  the 
agents  and  ofHcers  of  government  often  apj)ropriated 
the  presents  to  themselves,  and  afterwards  sold  them 
at  an  exorbitant  price  to  the  Indians.^  When  the 
French  had  possession  of  the  remote  forts,  they  were 
accustomed,  with  a  wise  liberality,  to  supply  the  sur- 
rounding Indians  with  guns,  ammunition,  and  cloth- 
ing, until  the  latter  had  forgotten  the  weapons  and 
garments  of  their  forefathers,  and  depended  on  the 
white  men  for  support.  The  sudden  Avithholding  of 
these  supplies  was,  therefore,  a  grievous  calamity. 
Want,  suffering,  and  death  were  the  consequences, 
and  this  cause  alone  woidd  have  been  enough  to 
produce  general  discontent.  But,  unhappily,  other 
grievances  were  superadded.^ 


J  MS.  .Johnson  Papers. 
-  Extnct  from  a  MH.  i  .tcr  —  Sir 
W.  .loliiison    to    (lovernor    Coldcn, 

Dec.  y4,  i7(i;). 

'•I  kIiuU  not  take  upon  me  to  point 
out  tlip  OrifriiviH  Fii'siinony  &c.  to 
w''  the  first  il(  lection  of  the  Indians 
can  Willi  jiitlico  &i  certainty  bo  ut- 


tributetl,  but  only  obse'vo,  as  I  did 
in  a  former  letter,  that  the  Indians 
(whose  friendslii|)  was  never  culti- 
vated by  the  Enj^lish  -.vith  that  atten- 
tion, expense,  &.  assiduity  with  w''  y" 
French  obtained  their  iiivonr,)  wor,) 
for  many  years  jealous  of  our  growinjj 
power,  were  repeatedly  assured  by 


Chap.  VH.] 


DISORDERS  OF  THE  FUR-TRADE. 


155 


The  English  fur-trade  had  never  been  well  regu. 
lated,  and  it  was  now  in  a  worse  condition  than  ever. 
Many  of  the  traders,  and  those  in  their  employ,  were 
ruffians  of  the  coarsest  stamp,  who  vied  with  each 
other  in  rapacity,  violence,  and  profligacy.  They 
cheated,  cursed,  and  plundered  the  Indians,  and  out- 
raged their  families;  offering,  when  compared  with 
the  French  traders,  who  were  under  better  regulation, 
a  most  unfavorable  example  of  the  character  of  their 
nation. 

The  officers  and  soldiers  of  the  garrisons  did  their 
full  part  in  exciting  the  general  resentment.  For- 
merly, when  the  warriors  came  to  the  forts,  they  had 
been  welcomed  by  the  French  with  attention  and 
respect.  The  inconvenience  which  their  presence  oc- 
casioned had  been  disregarded,  and  their  peculiarities 
overlooked.  But  now  they  were  received  with  cold 
looks  and  harsh  words  from  the  officers,  and  with 
oaths,  menaces,  and  sometimes  blows,  from  the  reck- 


tho  French  (who  were  at  y"  pains  of 
having  mnny  proper  emissaries  among 
them)  that  so  soon  as  we  became  mas- 
ters of  this  country,  we  should  imme- 
diately treat  them  with  neglect,  hem 
them  in  with  Posts  &  Forts,  encroach 
upon  their  Lands,  and  finally  destroy 
them.  All  w*"  atlter  the  reduction  of 
Canada,  seemed  to  appear  too  clearly 
to  the  Indians,  who  thereby  lost  the 
great  advantages  resulting  from  the 
possession  w''  the  French  formerly 
had  of  Posts  &.  Trade  in  their  Coun- 
try, neither  of  which  they  could  have 
ever  enjoyed  but  for  the  notice  they 
took  of  the  Indians,  &  the  presents 
they  bestowed  so  bountifully  upon 
them,  w''  however  expensive,  they 
wisely  foresaw  was  infinitely  cheap- 
er, and  much  more  effectual  than  the 
keeping  of  a  large  body  of  Regular 
Troops,  in    their  several    Countrys 


w*"  l-^wever  considerable  could  not 
protect  Trade,  or  cover  Settlements, 
but  must  remain  cooped  up  in  their 
garrisons,  or  else  be  exposed  to  the 
Ambuscades  &  surprises  of  an  En- 
emy over  vvhom  (froui  the  nature  & 
situation  of  their  country)  no  im- 
portant Advantage  can  be  gained,  — 
from  a  sense  of  these  Truths  the 
Frencii  chose  the  most  reasonable  & 
most  promising  Plan,  a  Plan  which 
has  endeared  tlieir  memory  to  most 
of  the  Indian  Nations,  who  would  1 
fear  generally  go  over  to  them  in 
case  they  over  got  footing  again 
in  this  Country,  &  who  were  repeat- 
edly exhorted,  &  encouraged  by  the 
French  (froui  motives  of  Int-'rest  & 
dislike  w*"  they  will  always  possess) 
to  fill  upon  us,  by  representir.^  rhat 
their  liberties  &  Country  were  in 
y'^  utmost  danger." 


m 


'I 


156 


ANGER  OF  THE  INDIANS. 


[Chap.  VEL 


less  and  brutal  soldiers.  When,  after  their  trouble- 
some and  intrusive  fashion,  they  were  lounging  every 
where  about  the  fort,  or  lazily  reclining  in  the  shadow 
of  the  walls,  they  were  met  with  muttered  ejacula- 
tions of  impatience  or  abrupt  orders  to  depart,  enforced, 
perhaps,  by  a  touch  from  the  but  of  a  sentinel's 
musket.  These  marks  of  contempt  were  unspeakably 
galling  to  theii  haughty  spirit.* 

But  what  most  contributed  to  the  gro^  ng  discon- 
tent of  the  tribes  was  the  intrusion  of  settlers  upon 
their  lands,  at  all  times  a  fruitful  source  of  Indian 
hostility.  Its  effects,  it  is  true,  could  only  be  felt  by 
those  whose  country  bordered  upon  the  English  set- 
tlements; but  among  these  were  the  most  powerful 
and  influential  of  the  tribes.  The  Delawares  and 
bhawanoes,  in  particular,  had  by  this  time  been  roused 
to  the  highest  pitch  of  exasperation.  Their  best  lands 
had  been  invaded,  and  all  remonstrance  had  been  fruit- 
less. They  viewed  with  wrath  and  fear  the  steady 
progress  of  the  white  man,  whose  settlements  had 
passed  the  Susquehanna,  and  were  fast  extending  to 
the  AUeghanies,  eating  away  the  forest  like  a  spread- 
ing canker.  The  anger  of  the  Delawares  was  abun- 
dantly shared  by  their  ancient  conquerors,  the  Six 
Nations.  The  threatened  occupation  of  Wyoming  by 
settlers  from   Connecticut  gave   great  umbrage  to  the 


1  Some  of  the  principal  causes  of 
the  wur  are  exhibited  with  spirit  and 
trutii  in  the  old  tragedy  of  "  Ponte- 
neh,"  written  probably  by  Major 
Rogers.  The  portion  of  the  play  re- 
ferred to  is  given  in  Appendix,  B. 

"Tiie  Engiisli  treat  us  with  much 
Disrcspocl,  and  we  have  the  greatest 
Reason  to  believe,  by  their  Behavior, 
tliey  intend  to  Cut  us  otT  entirely ; 


They  have  possessed  themselves  of 
our  Country,  it  is  now  in  our  power 
to  Dispossess  them  and  Recover  it, 
if  we  will  but  Embrace  the  opportu- 
nity before  they  have  time  to  assem- 
ble together,  and  fortify  themselves, 
there  is  no  time  to  be  lost,  let  us 
Strike  immediately." — Speech  of  n 
Seneca  chief  to  tlie  WyandoUi  and  Ot- 
tawaa  of  Detroit,  July,  17(11. 


*')» 


VIL 


Chap.  VII.]    SINISTER  MOVEMENTS  OF  THE  FRENCH. 


157 


confederacy.*  The  Senecas  were  more  especially 
incensed  at  English  intrusion,  since,  from  their  po- 
sition, they  were  farthest  removed  from  the  soothing 
influence  of  Sir  William  Johnson,  and  most  exposed 
to  the  seductions  of  the  French,  while  the  Mohawks, 
another  member  of  the  confederacy,  were  justly 
alarmed  at  seeing  the  better  part  of  their  lands  pat- 
ented out  without  their  consent.  Some  Christian  In- 
dians of  the  Oneida  tribe,  in  the  simplicity  of  their 
hearts,  sent  an  earnest  petition  to  Sir  WUliam  John- 
son, that  the  English  forts  within  the  limits  of  the 
Six  Nations  might  be  removed,  or,  as  the  petition, 
expresses  it,  kicked  out  of  the  tvay?  i  ^  .i  '."•  f  -V 
The  discontent  of  the  Indians  gave  great  satisfac- 
tion to  the  French,  who  saw  in  it  an  assurance  of 
safe  and  bloody  vengeance  on  their  conquerors.  Can- 
ada, it  is  true,  was  gone  beyond  hope  of  recovery; 
but  they  still  might  hope  to  revenge  its  loss.  Interest, 
moreover,  as  well  as  passion,  prompted  them  to  in- 
flame the  resentment  of  the  Indians;  for  most  of 
the  inhabitants  of  the  French  settlements  upon  the 
lakes  and  the  Mississippi  were  engaged  in  the  fur- 
trade,  and,  fearing  the  English  as  formidable  rivals, 
they  woidd  gladly  have  seen  them  driven  out  of  the 
country.  Traders,  hahitans,  coureurs  des  bois,  and  all 
other  classes  of  this  singular  popidation,  accordingly 


!    >-♦♦ 


1^ 


1  Minutes  of  Conference  witli  the 
Six  Nations  at  Hartford,  I7G3,  MS. 
Letter  —  Hamilton  to  Amherst,  May 
10,  17(11. 

•2  "We  are  now  left  in  Peace,  and 
have  nothing  to  do  hut  to  plant  our 
Corn,  Hunt  the  wild  Beasts,  smoke 
our  Pipes,  and  mind  Religion.  But 
as  those  Forts,  which  are  built  among 
us,  disturb  our  Peace,  tfc  are  a  great 
hurt  to  Religion,  because  some  of  our 
Warriors  arc  foolish,  &-  some  of  our 


Brother  Soldiers  don't  fear  God,  we 
therefore  desire  that  these  Forts  may 
be  puU'd  down,  &  kick'd  out  of  tlie 
way." 

At  a  conference  at  Philadelphia, 
in  August,  17GI,  an  Iroquois  sachem 
said,  "  We,  your  Brethren  of  the  sev- 
en Nations,  arc  penned  up  like  Hoggs. 
There  are  Forts  all  around  us,  and 
therefore  we  are  apprehensive  tliat 
Deatii  is  coming  upon  us." 


N 


158 


ANGER  OP  THE  INDIANS. 


[Chap.  VE. 


dispersed  themselves  among  the  villages  of  the  In- 
dians, or  held  councils  with  them  in  the  secret  places 
of  the  woods,  urging  them  to  take  up  arms  against 
the  English.  They  exhibited  the  conduct  of  the  lat- 
ter in  its  worst  light,  and  spai-ed  neither  misrepresen- 
tation nor  falsehood.  They  told  their  excite  rearers 
that  the  English  had  formed  a  deliberate  scheme  to 
root  out  the  whole  Indian  race,  and,  with  that  design, 
had  already  begun  to  hem  them  in  with  settlements 
ou  the  one  hand,  and  a  chain  of  forts  on  the  other. 
Among  other  atrocious  plans  for  their  destruction, 
they  had  instigated  the  Cherokees  to  attack  and  de- 
stroy  the  tribes  of  the  Ohio  valley.^  These  groundless 
calumnies  found  ready  belief.  The  French  declared, 
in  addition,  that  the  King  of  France  had  of  late  years 
fallen  asleep;  that,  during  his  slumbers,  the  English 
had  seized  upon  Canada ;  but  that  he  was  now  awake 
again,  and  that  his  armies  were  advancing  up  the  St. 
Lawrence  and  the  Mississippi,  to  drive  out  the  in- 
truders from  the  country  of  their  red  children.  To 
these  fabrications  was  added  the  more  substantial  en- 
couragement of  arms,  ammunition,  clothing,  and  pro- 
visions, which  the  French  trading  companies,  if  not 
the  officers  of  the  crown,  distributed  with  a  liberal 
hand.^        ' 

The  fierce  passions  of  the  Indians,  excited  by  their 
wrongs,  real  or  imagined,  and  exasperated  by  tlio 
representations  of  the  French,  were  yet  farther  wrought 
upon  by  influences  of  another  kind.  A  prophet  rose 
among  the  Delawares.  This  man  may  serve  as  a  coun- 
terpart to  the  famous  Shawanoc  prophet,  who  figiued 


1  Crophan's-  Journal.  See  Hil-  2  Examination  of  Gershom  Hicks, 
dreth,  Pioneer  History,  68.  Also  a  spy.  See  Pennsylvania  Gazette, 
Butler,  Hist.  Kcntuciiy,  Appendix.        No.  1846. 


iL-iisii  was  1 


Chap.  VII.] 


DELAWARE  PROPHET. 


159 


SO  conspicuously  in  the  Indian  outbreak  under  Te- 
cumseh,  immediately  before  the  war  with  England  in 
1812.  Many  other  parallel  instances  might  be  shown, 
as  the  great  susceptibility  of  the  Indians  to  religious 
and  superstitious  impressions  renders  the  advent  of  a 
prophet  among  them  no  very  rare  occurrence.  In 
the  present  instance,  the  inspired  Delaware  seems  to 
have  been  rather  an  enthusiast  than  an  impostor;  or 
ix3rhaps  he  combined  both  characters.  The  objects 
of  his  mission  were  not  wholly  political.  By  means 
of  certain  external  observances,  most  of  them  suf- 
ficiently frivolous  and  absurd,  his  disciples  were  to 
strengthen  and  purify  their  natures,  and  make  them- 
selves acceptable  to  the  Great  Spirit,  whose  messenger 
he  proclaimed  himself  to  be.  He  also  enjoined  them 
to  lay  aside  the  weapons  and  clothing  which  they 
received  from  the  white  men,  and  return  to  the  primi- 
tive life  of  their  ancestors.  By  so  doing,  and  by 
strictly  observing  his  other  precepts,  the  tribes  would 
soon  be  restored  to  their  ancient  greatness  and  power, 
and  be  enabled  to  drive  out  the  white  men  who  in- 
fested their  territory.  The  prophet  had  many  follow- 
ers. Indians  came  from  far  and  near,  and  gathered 
together  in  large  encampments  to  listen  to  his  exhor- 
.ations.  His  fame  spread  even  to  the  nations  of  the 
northern  lakes ;  but  though  his  disciples  followed  most 
of  his  injunctions,  flinging  away  flint  and  steel,  and 
making  copious  use  of  emetics,  with  other  observances 
equally  troublesome,  yet  the  requisition  to  abandon 
the  use  of  fire-arms  was  too  inconvenient  to  be  com- 
plied with.^ 


)-. 


-ft 


I  M'Cullough'a  Narrative.    See  In-    awares,  at  the  time  of  the  prophet's 
ridents  of  Border  Life,  98.    M'Cul-    appearance. 
loiigh  was  a  prisoner  among  tiie  Del- 


160 


THE  CONSPIRACY. 


[Chap.  VII. 


With  SO  many  -^i^ises  to  initatc  their  restless  ami 
warlike  spirit,  it  '  jald  not  be  supposed  that  the  In- 
dians would  long  remaiii  quiet.  Accordingly,  in  the 
summer  of  the  year  1761,  Captain  Campbell,  then  com- 
pififvling  at  Detroit,  received  information  that  a  depu- 
tation of  Senecas  had  come  to  the  neighboring  village 
of  the  Wyandots  for  the  purpose  of  instigating  the 
latter  to  destroy  him  and  his  garrison.^  On  farther 
inquiry,  the  plot  proved  to  be  general,  and  Niagara, 
Fort  Pitt,  and  other  posts,  were  to  share  the  fate  of 
Detroit.  Cami)bell  instantly  despatched  messengers  to 
3ir  Jeffrey  Amherst,  and  the  commanding  officers  of 
the  different  forts;  and,  by  this  timely  discovery,  the 
conspiracy  was  nii)ped  in  the  bud.  During  the  fol- 
lowing summer,  1762,  another  similar  design  was 
detected  and  suppressed.  They  proved  but  the  pre- 
cursors of  a  tempest.  Within  two  years  after  the 
discovery  of  the   first   plot,   a   scheme   Avas   matured 


1  MS.  Minutea  of  a  Council  held 
by  Deputies  of  the  Six  Nations,  with 
the  Wyandots,  Ottawas,  Ojibwas, 
and  Pottawattamies,  at  the  Wyandot 
town,  near  Detroit,  July  3,  17(>1. 

Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter — Cap- 
tain Campbell,  commanding  at  De- 
troit, to  Major  Walters,  conimanding 
at  Niagara. 

<  "  Detroit,  June  17th,  1761 , 
(  two  o'clock  in  tlic  morning. 
"Sir: 

"  I  had  the  favor  of  Yours,  with 
General  Amherst's  Dispatches. 

"  I  have  sent  You  an  Express  with 
a  very  Important  piece  of  Intelli- 
gence I  have  had  the  good  fortune 
to  Discover.  I  have  been  Lately 
alarmed  witli  Reports  of  the  bad  De- 
signs of  the  Indian  Nations  against 
this  place  and  the  English  in  Gen- 
eral ;  1  can  now  Inform  You  for  cer- 
tain it  Comes  from  the  Six  Nations ; 


and  that  they  have  Sent  Belts  of 
Wampum  fit  Deputys  to  all  the  Na- 
tions, from  Nova  Scotia  to  the  Illi- 
nois, to  take  up  the  Hatchet  against 
the  English,  and  have  Employed  the 
Messagues  to  send  Belts  of  Wam- 
pum to  the  Northern  Nations 

"Their  project  is  as  follows :  the  Six 
Nations  —  at  least  the  Senecas  are  to 
Assemble  at  the  head  of  French 
Creck,within  five  and  twenty  Leagues 
of  Presqu'Islo,  part  of  the  Six  Na- 
tions, the  Delawares  &,  Shanese,  arc 
to  Assemble  on  the  Ohio,  and  all  at 
the  same  time,  about  tlie  latter  End 
of  this  Month,  to  surprise  Niagara 
&,  Fort  Pitt,  and  Cut  off  the  Com- 
munication Every  where  ;  I  hope  this 
will  Come  time  Enough  to  put  You 
en  Your  Guard  and  to  send  to  Os- 
wego, and  all  the  Posts  on  that  com- 
munication, they  Expect  to  be  Joined 
by  the  Nations  that  are  Com  i  tVuin 
the  North  by  Toronto." 


Chap.  VII.] 


rONTIAC. 


161 


greater  in  extent,  deeper  and  more  comprehensive  in 
design  —  such  a  one  as  was  never,  before  or  since, 
conceived  or  executed  by  a  North  American  Indian. 
It  V  as  determined  to  att.ick  all  the  English  forts  upon 
the  same  day;  then,  luuing  destroyed  their  garrisons, 
to  turn  upon  the  defenceless  frontier,  and  ravage  and 
l;»y  wabte  the  settlements,  imtil,  as  many  of  the  In- 
dia s  fondly  believed,  the  English  should  all  be  diiven 
"'ito  t;  '^  sea,  and  the  country  restored  to  its  primi- 
>wners.  >      t-j     •■    ■  ^    :,;>,■ 

1*1  Hfficult  to  determine  which  ti'.i  >a;  first  to 
tiie  cry  of  war.  There  -vere  many  who  might 
lone  so,  for  all  the  savages  in  the  backwoods 
were  ripe  for  an  outbreak,  and  the  movement  seemed 
almost  simultaneous.  The  Delawares  and  Senecas 
were  the  most  incensed,  and  Kiashuta,  chief  of  the 
latter,  was  perhaps  foremost  to  apply  the  torch ;  but, 
if  this  were  the  case,  he  touched  tire  to  materials 
alrendy  on  the  point  of  igniting.  It  belonged  to  a 
greater  chief  tlian  he  to  give  method  and  order  to 
what  would  else  have  been  a  wild  burst  of  furv,  and 
to  convert  desultory  attacks  into  a  fonnidable  and 
protracted  war.  But  for  Pontiac,  the  whole  might 
have  ended  in  a  few  troublesome  inroads  upon  tlie 
frontier,  and  a  little  whooping  and  yelling  under  tlie 
walls  of  Fort  Pitt. 

Pontiac,  as  already  mentioned,  was  principal  chief 
of  the  Ottawas.  The  Ottawas,  Ojibwas,  and  Potta- 
wattamies,  had  long  been  united  in  a  '  )ose  kind  of 
confederacy,  of  which  he  was  the  virtual  head.  Over 
tliose  around  him  his  autherity  was  almost  despotic, 
and  his  power  extended  far  beyond  the  limits  of  the 
three  united  tribes.  His  influence  was  great  among 
all  the  nations  of  the  Illinois  country ;  while,  from 
21  .N* 


% 


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^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


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^     ^ 


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1.0 


1.1 


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Photographic 

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MIUTfR,N.Y.  MSSO 

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'^ 


162 


THE  CONSPIBACY. 


[Chap.  VII. 


the  sources  of  the  Ohio  to  those  of  the  Mississippi, 
and,  indeed,  to  the  farthest  boundaries  of  the  wide- 
spread Algonquin  race,  his  name  was  known  and  re- 
specteci* 

The  fact  that  Pontiac  was  bom  the  son  of  a  chief 
would  in  no  degree  account  for  the  extent  of  his 
power;  for,  among  Indians,  many  a  chief's  son  sinks 
back  into  insignificant?,  while  the  offspring  of  a  com- 
mon warrior  may  succeed  to  his  place.  Among  all 
the  wild  tribes  of  the  continent,  personal  merit  is 
indispensable  to  gaining  or  preserving  dignity.  Cour- 
age, resolution,  wisdom,  address,  and  eloquence  are 
sure  passports  to  distinction.  With  all  these  Pontiac 
was  preeminently  endowed,  and  it  was  chiefly  to  ^em, 
urged  to  their  highest  activity  by  a  vehement  am- 
bition, that  he  owed  his  greatness.  His  intellect 
was  strong  and  capacious.  He  possessed  command- 
ing energy  and  force  of  mind,  and  in  subtlety  and 
craft  could  match  the  best  of  his  wily  race.  But, 
though  capable  of  acts  of  lofty  magnanimity,  he  was  a 
thorough  savage,  with  a  "vvider  range  of  intellect  than 
those  around  him,  but  sharing  all  their  passions  and 
prejudices,  their  fierceness  and  treachery.  Yet  his 
faults  were  the  faults  of  his  race;  and  they  cannot 
eclipse  his  nobler  qualities,  the  great  powers  and 
heroic  virtues  of  his  mind.  His  memory  is  still  cher- 
ished among  the  remnants  of  many  Algonquin  tribes, 
and  the  celebrated  Tecumseh  adopted  him  for  his 
model,  proving  himself  no  unworthy  imitator.*. 


1  Drake,  Life  of  Tecunush,  138. 

Several  tribes,  the  Miamis,  Sacs, 
and  others,  have  claimed  connection 
with  the  great  chief;  but  it  is  certain 
that  he  was,  by  adoption  at  least,  an 
Ottawa.      Henry  Conner,  formerly 


governmeut  interpreter  for  the  north- 
ern tribes,  declared,  on  the  faith  of 
Indian  tradition,  that  he  was  born 
among  the  Ottawas  of  an  Ojibwa 
mother,  a  circumstance  which  proved 
an  advantage  to  him  by  increasing 


CHAP.Vn.]     GLOOMY  PROSPECTS  OP  THE  INDIANS. 


163 


Pontiac  was  now  about  fifty  year^  old.  Until  Mar 
jor  Rogers  came  into  the  country,  he  had  been,  from 
motives  probably  both  of  interest  and  inclination,  a 
firm  friend  of  the  French.  Not  long  before  the  French 
war  broke  out,  he  had  saved  the  garrison  of  Detroit 
from  the  imminent  peril  of  an  attack  jfrom  some  of 
the  discontented  tribes  of  the  north.  During  the  war, 
he  had  fought  on  the  side  of  France.  It  is  said  that 
he  commanded  the  Ottawas  at  the  memorable  defeat 
of  Braddock;  but,  at  all  events,  he  was  treated  with 
much  honor  by  the  French  officers,  and  received  espe- 
cial marks  of  esteem  from  the  Marquis  of  Montcalm.^ 

We  have  seen  how,  when  the  tide  of  affairs  changed, 
the  subtle  and  ambitious  chief  trimmed  his  bark  to 
the  current,  and  gave  the  hand  of  friendship  to  the 
English.  That  he  was  disappoiated  in  their  treat- 
ment of  him,  and  in  all  the  hopes  that  he  had  formed 
from  their  alliance,  is  sufficiently  evident  from  one 
of  his  speeches.  A  new  light  soon  began  to  dawn 
upon  his  untaught  but  powerful  mind,  and  he  saw 
the  altered  posture  of  affairs  imder  its  true  aspect 

It  was  a  momentous  and  gloomy  crisis  for  the  In- 
dian race,  for  never  before  had  they  been  exposed  to 
such  pressiag  and  imminent  danger.  With  the  down- 
fall of  Canada,  the  Indian  tribes  had  sunk  at  once 
from  their  position  of  power  and  importance.  Hith- 
erto the  two  rival  European  nations  had  kept  each 
other  in  check  upon  the  American  continent,  and  the 


his  influence  over  both  tribes.  An 
Ojibwa  Indian  told  the  writer  that 
some  portion  of  his  power  was  to  be 
ascribed  to  his  being  a  chief  of  the 
JIfe/at,  a  magical  association  among 
the  Indians  of  the  hkes,  in  which 
character  he  exerted  an  influence  on 
the  superstition  of  his  followers. 


1  The  venerable  Pierre  Chouteau, 
of  St.  Louis,  remembered  to  have 
seen  Pontiac,  a  few  days  before  the 
death  of  the  latter,  attired  in  the  com- 
plete uniform  of  a  French  ofBcer, 
which  had  been  given  him  by  the 
Marquis  of  Montcalm  not  long  before 
the  battle  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham. 


J^Mil 


164 


THE  CONSPIRACY. 


ICttkP.  vn. 


•i  ; 


Indian  tribes  had,  in  some  measure,  held  the  balance 
of  power  between  them.  To  conciliate  their  good 
will  and  gain  their  alliance,  to  avoid  offending  them 
by  injustice  and  encroachment,  was  the  policy  both 
of  the  French  and  English.  But  now  the  face  of 
affairs  was  changed.  The  English  had  gained  an  un- 
disputed ascendency,  and  the  Indians,  no  longer  im- 
portant as  allies,  were  treated  as  mere  barbarians, 
who  might  be  trampled  upon  with  impunity.  Aban- 
doned to  their  own  feeble  resources  and  divided 
strength,  the  tribes  must  fast  recede,  and  dwindle 
away  before  the  steady  progress  of  the  colonial  power. 
Already  their  best  hunting-grounds  were  invaded,  and 
from  the  eastern  ridges  of  the  Alleghanies  they  riiight 
see,  from  far  and  near,  the  smoke  of  the  settlers'  clear- 
ings, rising  in  tall  columns  from  the  dark-green  bosom 
of  the  forest.  The  doom  of  the  race  was  sealed,  and 
no  human  power  could  avert  it;  but  they,  in  their 
ignorance,  believed  otherwise,  and  vainly  thought  that, 
by  a  desperate  effort,  they  might  yet  uproot  and  over- 
throw the  growing  strength  of  thr'     destroyers. 

It  would  be  idle  to  suppose  ti.  che  great  mass 
of  the  Indians  understood,  in  its  full  extent,  the  dan- 
ger which  threatened  their  race.  With  them,  the 
war  was  a  mere  outbreak  of  fury,  and  they  turned 
against  their  enemies  with  as  little  reason  or  fore- 
cast as  a  panther  when  he  leaps  at  the  throat  of 
the  himter.  Goaded  by  wrongs  and  indignities,  they 
struck  for  revenge,  and  relief  from  the  evil  of  the 
moment.  But  the  mind  of  Pontiac  could  embrace  a 
wider  and  deeper  view.  The  peril  of  the  times  was 
unfolded  in  its  full  extent  before  him,  and  he  resolved 
to  unite  the  tribes  in  one  gi-and  effort  to  avert  it. 
He  did  not,  like  many  of  his   people,  entertain  the 


Chap.  VH.] 


DESIGNS  OF  PONTIAC. 


165 


absurd  idea  that  the  Indians,  by  their  unaided  strength, 
could  drive  the  English  into  the  sea.  He  adopted 
the  only  plan  that  was  consistent  with  reason,  that 
of  restoring  the  French  ascendency  in  the  west,  and 
once  more  opposing  a  check  to  British  encroachment. 
With  views  like  these,  he  lent  a  greedy  ear  to  the 
plausible  falsehoods  of  the  Canadians,  who  assured 
him  that  the  armies  of  King  Louis  were  already  ad- 
vancing to  recover  Canada,  and  that  the  French  and 
their  red  brethren,  fighting  side  by  side,  would  drive 
the  English  dogs  back  within  their  own  narrow  limits. 
Revolving  these  thoughts,  and  remembering  more- 
over that  his  own  ambitious  views  might  be  advanced 
by  the  hostilities  he  meditated,  Pontiac  no  longer  hesi- 
tated. Revenge,  ambition,  and  patriotism,  wrought 
upon  him  alike,  and  he  resoh^ed  on  war.  At  the 
close  of  the  year  1762,  he  sent  out  ambassadors  to 
the  difierent  nations.  They  visited  the  country  of 
the  Ohio  and  its  tributaries,  passed  northward  to  the 
region  of  the  upper  lakes,  and  the  wild  borders  of 
the  River  Ottawa;  and  far  southward  towards  the 
mouth  of  the  Mississippi.^  Bearing  with  them  the 
war-belt  of  wampum,®  broad  and  long,  as  the  impor- 


1  MS.  Letter— M.  D'Abbadie  to 
M.  Neyon,  1764. 

8  Wampum  was  an  article  much 
in  use  among  many  tribes,  not  only 
for  ornament,  but  for  the  graver  pur- 
poses of  councils,  treaties,  and  em- 
bassies. In  ancient  times,  it  consisted 
of  small  shells,  or  fragments  of  shells, 
rudely  perforated,  and  strung  togeth- 
er ;  but  more  recently,  it  was  manu- 
factured by  the  white  men,  from  the 
inner  portions  of  certain  marine  and 
fresh  water  shells.  In  shape,  the 
grains  or  beads  resembled  small 
pieces  of  broken  pipe-stem,  and  were 
of  various  sizes  and  colors,  black, 


purple,  and  white.  When  used  for 
ornament,  they  were  arranged  fanci- 
fully in  necklaces,  collars,  and  era- 
broidery  ;  but  when  employed  for 
public  purposes,  they  were  disposed 
m  a  great  variety  of  patterns  and  de- 
vices, which,  to  the  minds  of  the  In- 
dians, had  all  the  significance  of 
hieroglyphics.  An  Indian  orator,  at 
every  clause  of  his  speech,  delivered 
a  belt  or  string  of  wampum,  varying 
in  size,  according  to  the  importance 
of  what  he  had  said,  and,  by  its  fig- 
ures and  coloring,  so  arranged  as  to 
perpetuate  the  remembrance  of  his 
words.    These  belts  were  carefully 


t;\ 


''1 
^1 


J  1 


■\ 


m 
1* 


i; 

■  - 


166 


THE  CONSPIRACY. 


[Chap.  VII. 


tance  of  the  message  demanded;  and  the  tomahawk 
stained  red,  in  token  of  war;  they  went  from  camp 
to  camp,  and  village  to  village.  Wherever  they  ap- 
peared, the  sachems  and  old  men  assembled,  to  hear 
the  words  of  the  great  Pontiac.  Then  the  head  chief 
of  the  embassy  flung  down  the  tomahawk  on  the 
ground  before  them,  and  holding  the  war-belt  in  his 
hand,  delivered,  with  vehement  gesture,  word  for  word, 
the  speech  with  which  he  was  charged.  It  was  heard 
every  where  with  approbation ;  the  belt  was  accepted, 
the  hatchet  snatched  up,  and  the  assembled  chiefs 
stood  pledged  to  take  part  in  the  war.  The  blow 
was  to  be  struck  at  a  certain  time  in  the  month  of 
May  following,  to  be  indicated  by  the  changes  of  the 
moon.  The  tribes  were  to  rise  together,  each  destroy- 
ing the  English  garrison  in  its  neighborhood,  and 
then,  with  a  general  rush,  the  whole  were  to  turn 
against  the  settlements  of  the  frontier. 

The  tribes,  thus  banded  together  against  the  Eng- 
lish, comprised,  with  a  few  unimportant  exceptions,  the 
whole  Algonquin  stock,  to  whom  were  united  the  Wy- 
andots,  the  Senecas,  and  several  tribes  of  the  lower 
Mississippi.      The    Senecas   were   the   only  members 


il: 


stored  up  like  written  documents,  and 
it  was  generally  the  office  of  some 
old  man  to  interpret  their  meaning. 

When  a  wampum  belt  was  sent  to 
summon  the  tribes  to  join  in  war,  its 
color  was  always  red  or  black,  while 
the  prevailing  color  of  a  peace-belt 
was  white.  Tobacco  was  sometimes 
used  on  such  occasions  as  a  substi- 
tute for  wampum,  since  in  their  coun- 
cils the  Indiana  are  in  the  habit  of 
constantly  smoking,  and  tobacco  is 
therefore  taken  as  the  emblem  of  de- 
liberation. With  the  tobacco  or  the 
belt  of  wampum,  presents  are  not  un- 
frequently  sent  to  conciliate  the  good 


will  of  the  tribe  whose  alliance  is 
sought.  In  the  summer  of  the  year 
1846,  when  the  western  bands  of  tlie 
Dahcotah  were  preparing  to  go  in 
concert  against  their  enemies  the 
Crows,  the  chief  who  was  at  the  head 
of  the  design,  and  in  whose  village 
the  writer  was  an  inmate,  impov- 
erished himself  by  sending  most  of 
his  horses  as  presents  to  the  chiefs 
of  the  surrounding  villages.  On  this 
occasion,  tobacco  was  the  token  borne 
by  the  messengers,  as  wampum  is  not 
in  use  among  the  tribes  of  that  re- 
gion. 


CHAP.Vn.]         DISSIMULATION  OP  THE  INDIANS. 


167 


of  the  Iroquois  confederacy  who  joined  in  the  league, 
the  rest  being  kept  quiet  by  the  influence  of  Sir 
William  Johnson,  whose  utmost  exertions,  however, 
were  barely  sufficient  to  allay  their  irritation.^  i*> 
While  thus  on  the  very  eve  of  an  outbreak,  the 
Indians  concealed  their  design  with  the  deep  dissimu- 
lation of  their  race.  The  warriors  still  lounged  about 
the  forts,  with  calm,  impenetrable  faces,  begging  as 
heretofore  for  tobacco,  gunpowder,  and  whiskey.  Now 
and  then,  some  slight  intimation  of  danger  would 
startle  the  garrisons  from  their  security,  and  an  Eng- 
lish trader,  coming  in  from  the  Indian  villages,  would 
report  that,  from  their  manner  and  behavior,  he  sus- 
pected them  of  mischievous  designs.  Some  scoundrel 
half-breed  would  be  heard  boasting  in  his  cups  that 
before  next  summer  he  would  have  English  hair  to 
fringe  his  hunting-frock.  On  one  occasion,  the  plot 
was  nearly  discovered.  Early  in  March,  1763,  En- 
sign Holmes,  commanding  at  Fort  Miami,  was  told 
by  a  fiiendly  Indian,  that  the  warriors  in  the  neigh- 
boring village  had  lately  received  a  war-belt,  with  a 
message  urging  them  to  destroy  him  and  his  garri- 
son, and  that  this  they  were  preparing  to  do.  Holmes 
called  the  Indians  together,  and  boldly  charged  them 
with  their  design.  They  did  as  Indians  on  such  oc- 
casions have  often  done,  confessed  their  fault  with 
much  apparent  contrition,  laid  the  blame  on  a  neigh- 
boring tribe,  and  professed  eternal  friendship  to  their 
brethren  the  English.  Holmes  writes  to  report  his 
discovery  to  Major  Gladwyn,  who,  in  his  turn,  sends 
the  information  to  Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst,  expressing  his 
opinion  that  there  has  been  a  general  irritation  among 

^  MS.  Johnson  Papers.    < 


^■37-    Ij 


168 


THE  CONSPIRACY. 


[Chap.  VD. 


the  Indians,  but  that  the  affair  will  soon  blow  over, 
and  that,  in  the  neighborhood  of  his  own  post,  the 
savages  were  perfectly  tranquil.*  Within  cannon  shot 
of  the  deluded  officer's  palisades,  was  the  village  of 
Pontiac  himself,  the  arch  enemy  of  the  English,  and 
prime  mover  in  the  plot. 

With  the  approach  of  spring,  the  Indians,  coming 
in  from  their  wintering  grounds,  began  to  appear  in 
small  parties  about  the  different  forts;  but  now  they 
seldom  entered  them,  encamping  at  a  little  distance 
in  the  woods.  They  were  fast  pushing  their  prepara- 
tions for  the  meditated  blow,  and  waiting  with  stifled 
eagerness  for  the  appointed  hour. 


1  MS.  Speech  of  a  Miami  Chief 
to  Ensign  Holmea.  MS.  Letter — 
Holmes  to  Gladwyn,  March  16, 1763. 
Glailwyn  to  Amherst,  March  21, 1763. 

Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  —  En- 
sign Holmes,  commanding  at  Miamis, 
to  Major  Gladwyn :  —       * 

5    "FortMiamiR, 
'  i  March  aoth,  1763. 

"Since  my  Last  Letter  to  You, 
wherein  I  Acquainted  You  of  the 
Bloody  Belt  bemg,  in  this  Village,  I 
have  made  all  the  search  I  could  aoout 


it,  and  have  found  it  out  to  be  True ; 
Whereon  I  Assembled  all  the  Chiefs 
of  this  Nation,  &  after  a  long  and 
troublesome  Spell  with  them,  I  Ob- 
tained the  Belt,  with  a  Speech,  as  You 
will  Receive  Enclosed;  This  Affair 
is  very  timelv  Stopt,  and  I  hope  the 
News  of  a  Peace  will  put  a  Stop  to 
any  further  Troubles  with  these  In- 
dians, who  are  the  Principal  Ones  of 
Setting  Mischief  on  Foot  I  send 
you  the  Belt,  with  this  Packet,  which 
I  hope  You  will  Forward  to  the  Gen- 


eral. 


r 


•-i   / 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


INDIAN  PREPARATION. 

I  INTERRUPT  the  progress  of  the  narrative  to  glance 
for  a  moment  at  the  Indians  in  their  military  capacity, 
and  observe  how  far  they  were  qualified  to  prosecute 
the  formidable  war  into  which  they  were  about  to 
plunge. 

A  people  living  chiefly  by  the  chase,  and  there- 
fore, of  necessity,  thinly  scattered  over  a  great  space, 
divided  into  numerous  tribes,  held  together  by  no 
strong  principle  of  cohesion,  and  with  no  central 
government  to  combine  their  strength,  could  act 
with  little  efficiency  against  such  an  enemy  as  was 
now  opposed  to  them.  Loose  and  disjointed  as  a 
whole,  the  government  even  of  individual  tribes,  and 
of  their  smallest  separate  communities,  was  too  feeble 
to  deserve  the  name.  There  were,  it  is  true,  tli'fs 
whose  office  was  in  a  manner  hereditary;  but  their 
authority  was  wholly  of  a  moral  nature,  and  enforced 
by  no  compulsory  law.  Their  province  was  to  ad- 
vise, and  not  to  command.  Their  influence,  such  as 
it  was,  is  chiefly  to  be  ascribed  to  the  principle  of 
hero-worship^  natural  to  the  Indian  character,  and  to 
the  reverence  for  age,  which  belongs  to  a  state  of 
society  where  a  patriarchal  element  largely  prevails. 
It  was  their  office  to  declare  war  and  make  peace; 
but  when  war  was  declared,  they  had  no  power  to 
22  o 


V* 


3"*i. 


I      I 


170 


INDIAN  PREPABATION. 


[Cbat.  vin. 


ill 


I'V 


i.l 


If:, 


carry  the  declaration  into  effect.  The  warriors  fought 
if  they  chose  to  do  so;  but  if,  on  the  contrary,  they 
preferred  to  remain  quiet,  no  man  could  force  them 
to  lift  the  hatchet.  The  war-chief,  whose  part  it  was 
to  lead  them  to  battle,  was  a  mere  partisan,  whom  his 
bravery  and  exploits  had  led  to  distinction.  If  he 
thought  proper,  he  sang  his  war-song  and  danced  his 
war-dance,  and  as  many  of  the  young  men  as  were 
disposed  to  follow  him  gathered  aroimd  and  enlisted 
themselves  under  him.  Over  these  volunteers  he  had 
no  legal  authority,  and  they  could  desert  him  at  any 
moment,  with  no  other  penalty  than  disgrace.  When 
several  war-parties,  of  different  bands  or  tribes,  were 
united  in  a  common  enterprise,  their  chiefs  elected  a 
leader,  who  was  nominally  to  command  the  whole ;  but 
unless  this  leader  was  a  man  of  high  distinction,  and 
endowed  with  great  mental  power,  his  commands  were 
disregarded,  and  his  authority  was  a  cipher.  Among 
his  followers  was  every  latent  element  of  discord, 
pride,  jealousy,  and  ancient  half-smothered  feuds,  ready 
at  any  moment  to  break  out,  and  tear  the  whole 
asunder.  His  warriors  would  often  desert  in  bodies ; 
and  many  an  Indian  army,  before  reaching  the  ene- 
my's country,  has  been  known  to  dwindle  away  until 
it  was  reduced  to  a  mere  scalping  party. 

To  twist  a  rope  of  sand  would  be  as  easy  a  task 
as  to  form  a  permanent  and  effective  army  of  sucli 
materials.  The  wild  love  of  freedom,  and  impatience 
of  all  control,  which  mark  the  Indian  race,  ren- 
der them  utterly  intolerant  of  military  discipline. 
Partly  from  their  individual  character,  and  partly 
from  this  absence  of  subordination,  spring  results 
highly  unfavorable  to  the  efficiency  of  continued  and 
extended  military  operation.     Indian  warriors,  when 


Chat.  VIU]     THE  INDIAITS  AS  A  MILITABY  FEOFLE. 


171 


acting  in  large  masses,  are  to  the  last  degree  way- 
ward, capricious,  and  unstable;  infirm  of  purpose  as 
a  mob  of  children,  and  devoid  of  providence  and  fore- 
sight. To  provide  supplies  for  a  campaign  forms  no 
part  of  their  system.  Hence  the  blow  must  be  struck 
at  once,  or  not  struck  at  all ;  and  to  postpone  victory 
is  to  insure  defeat.  It  is  when  acting  in  small,  de- 
tached parties,  that  the  Indian  warrior  puts  forth  his 
energies,  and  displays  his  admirable  address,  endur- 
ance, and  intrepidity.  It  is  then  that  he  becomes 
a  truly  formidable  enemy.  Fired  with  the  hope  of 
winning  scalps,  he  is  stanch  as  a  bloodhound.  No 
hardship  can  divert  him  firom  his  purpose,  and  no 
danger  subdue  his  patient  and  cautious  courage. 

From  their  inveterate  passion  for  war,  the  Indians 
are  always  prompt  enough  to  engage  in  it;  and  on 
the  present  occasion,  the  prevailing  irritation  afforded 
ample  assurance  that  they  would  not  remain  idle. 
While  there  was  little  risk  that  they  would  capture 
any  strong  and  well-defended  fort,  or  carry  any  im- 
portant position,  there  was,  on  the  other  hand,  every 
reason  to  apprehend  wide-spread  havoc,  and  a  destruc- 
tive war  of  detail.  That  the  war  might  be  carried 
on  with  vigor  and  effect,  it  was  the  part  of  the  Indian 
leaders  to  work  upon  the  passions  of  their  people, 
and  keep  alive  the  feel^ug  of  irritation;  to  whet  their 
native  appetite  for  blood  and  glory,  and  cheer  them 
on  to  the  attack ;  to  guard  against  all  that  might 
quench  their  ardor,  or  abate  their  fierceness ;  to  avoid 
pitched  battles;  never  to  fight  except  under  advan- 
tage; and  to  avail  themselves  of  all  the  aid  which 
surprise,  craft,  and  treachery  could  afford.  The  very 
circumstances  which  unfitted  the  Indians  for  continued 
and  concentrated  attack  were,  in  another  view,  highly 


»  'til 


Wm': 


n 

II 

i. 
I 

1  : 
i 


\) 


172 


INDIAN  PREPARATION. 


[CiLur.  vm. 


advantageous,  by  preventing  the  enemy  from  assail- 
ing them  with  vital  effect.  It  was  no  easy  task  to 
penetrate  tangled  woods  in  search  of  a  foe,  alert  and 
active  as  a  lynx,  who  would  seldom  stand  and  fight, 
whose  deadly  shot  und  triumphant  whoop  were  the 
first  and  often  the  last  tokens  of  his  presence,  and 
who,  at  the  approach  of  a  hostile  force,  would  vanish 
into  the  black  recesses  of  forests  and  pine  swamps, 
only  to  renew  his  attacks  afresh  with  unabated  ardor. 
There  were  no  forts  to  capture,  no  magazines  to  de- 
stroy, and  little  property  to  seize  upon.  No  species 
of  warfare  could  be  more  perilous  and  harassing  in 
its  prosecution,  or  less  satisfactory  in  its  results. 

The  English  colonies  at  this  time  were  but  ill 
fitted  to  bear  the  brunt  of  the  impending  war.  The 
army  which  had  conquered  Canada  was  now  broken 
up  and  dissolved ;  the  provincials  were  disbanded,  and 
most  of  the  regulars  sent  home.  A  few  fragments 
of  regiments,  miserably  wasted  by  war  and  sickness, 
were  just  arrived  from  the  West  Indies ;  and  of  these, 
several  were  already  ordered  to  England,  to  be  dis- 
charged. There  remained  barely  troops  enough  to 
furnish  feeble  garrisons  for  the  various  forts  on  the 
frontier  and  in  the  Indian  country.^  At  the  head  of 
this  dilapidated  army  was  Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst,  the 
able  and  resolute  soldier  who  had  achieved  the  re- 
duction of  Canada.  He  was  a  man  well  fitted  for 
the  emergency;  cautious,  bold,  active,  far-sighted, 
and  endowed  with  a  singular  power  of  breathing 
his  own  energy  and  zeal  into  those  who  served  un- 
der him.  The  command  could  not  have  been  in  bet- 
ter hands;  and  the  results  of  the  war,  lamentable  as 


i ' 


fi, 


^.(:       , 


1  Mante,  485. 


Chat.  VUI.] 


THE  PEACE  OF  PARIS. 


173 


they  were,  would  have  been  much  more  disastrous, 
but  for  his  promptness  and  vigor,  and,  above  all,  his 
judicious  selection  of  those  to  whom  he  confided  the 
execution  of  his  orders. 

While  the  war  was  on  the  eve  of  breaking  out,  an 
event  occurred  which  had  afterwards  an  important 
effect  upon  its  progress  —  the  signing  of  the  treaty 
of  peace  at  Paris,  on  the  tenth  of  February,  1763.* 
By  this  treaty  France  resigned  her  claims  to  the  ter^ 
ritories  east  of  the  Mississippi,  and  that  great  river 
now  became  the  western  boundary  of  the  British  co- 
lonial possessions.  In  portioning  out  her  new  acqui- 
sitions into  separate  governments,  England  left  the 
valley  of  the  Ohio  and  the  adjacent  regions  as  an 
Indian  domain,  and  by  the  proclamation  of  the  sev- 
enth of  October  following,  the  intrusion  of  settlers 
upon  these  lands  was  strictly  prohibited.''  Could  these 
just  and  necessarj'  measures  have  been  sooner  adopted, 
it  is  probable  that  the  Indian  war  might  have  been 
prevented,  or,  at  all  events,  rendered  less  general  and 
violent,  for  the  treaty  would  have  made  it  apparent 
that  the  French  could  never  repossess  themselves  of 
Canada,  and  have  proved  ^he  futility  of  every  hope 
which  the  Indians  entertained  of  assistance  from  that 
quarter,  while,  at  the  same  time,  the  royal  proclama- 
tion would  have  greatly  tended  to  tranquillize  their 
minds,  by  removing  the  chief  cause  of  irritation.  But 
the  remedy  came  too  late.  While  the  sovereigns  of 
France,  England,  and  Spain,  were  signing  the  treaty 
at  Paris,  countless  Indian  warriors  in  the  American 
forests  were  singing  the  war-song,  and  whetting  their 
scalping-knives.  t--  't 

1  Holmes,  Annals,  II.  258. 

9  See  Proclamation,  Gentleman's  Magazine,  XXXIII.  477. 


ch 


H 


1 1 


2 


ij» 


"i  3» 


174 


INDIAN  PREPARATION. 


[Chap.  Vm. 


Throughout  the  western  wilderness,  in  a  hundred 
camps  and  villages,  were  celebrated  the  savage  rites 
of  war.  Warriors,  women,  and  children  were  alike 
eager  and  excited;  magicians  consulted  their  oracles, 
and  prepared  charms  to  insure  success ;  while  the  war- 
chief,  his  body  painted  black  from  head  to  foot, 
withdrawing  from  the  people,  concealed  himself  among 
rocks  and  caverns,  or  in  the  dark  recesses  of  the  forest. 
Here,  fasting  and  praying,  he  calls  day  and  night 
upon  the  Great  Spirit,  consulting  his  dreams,  to  draw 
from  them  auguries  of  good  or  evil ;  and  if,  perchance, 
a  vision  of  the  great  war-eagle  seems  to  hover  over 
him  with  expanded  wings,  he  exults  in  the  full  con- 
viction of  triumph.  When  a  few  days  have  elapsed, 
he  emerges  from  his  retreat,  and  the  people  discover 
him  descending  from  the  woods,  and  approaching  their 
camp,  black  as  a  demon  of  war,  and  shrunken  with 
fasting  and  vigil.  They  flock  around  and  listen  to 
his  wild  harangue.  He  calls  on  them  to  avenge  the 
blood  of  their  slaughtered  relatives ;  he  assures  them 
that  the  Great  Spirit  is  on  their  side,  and  that  vic- 
tory is  certain.  With  exulting  cries  they  disperse  to 
their  ^vigwams,  to  array  themselves  in  the  savage  dec- 
orations of  the  war-dress.  An  old  man  now  passes 
through  the  camp,  and  invites  the  warriors  to  a  feast 
in  the  name  of  the  chief  They  gather  from  all 
quarters  to  his  wigwam,  where  they  find  him  seated, 
no  longer  covered  with  black,  but  adorned  with  the 
startling  and  fantastic  blazonry  of  the  war-paint. 
Those  who  join  in  the  feast  pledge  themselves,  by  so 
doing,  to  follow  him  against  the  enemy.  The  guests 
seat  themselves  on  the  ground,  in  a  circle  around  the 
wigwam,  and  the  flesh  of  dogs  is  placed  in  wooden 
dishes  before   them,  while   the   chief,   though  goaded 


Chap.  VHI.]     THE  WAR-FEAST— THE  WAB-DANCE. 


175 


by  the  pangs  of  his  long,  unbroken  fast,  sits  smoking 
his  pipe  with  unmoved  countenance,  and  takes  no 
part  in  the  feast. 

Night  has  now  closed  in,  and  the  rough  clearing 
is  illumined  by  the  blaze  of  fires  and  burning  pine 
knots,  casting  their  deep  red  glare  upon  the  dusky 
boughs  of  the  tall  surrounding  pine-trees,  and  upon 
the  wild  multitude  who,  fluttering  with  feathers  and 
bedaubed  with  paint,  have  gathered  for  the  celebra- 
tion of  the  war-dance.  A  painted  post  is  driven  into 
the  ground,  and  the  crowd  form  a  wide  circle  around  it. 
The  chief  leaps  into  the  vacant  space,  brandishing 
his  hatchet  as  if  rushing  upon  an  enemy,  and,  in  a 
loud,  vehement  tone,  chk^nts  his  own  exploits  and 
those  of  his  ancestors,  enacting  the  deeds  which  he 
describes,  yelling  the  war-whoop,  throwing  himself 
into  all  the  postures  of  actual  fight,  striking  the  post 
as  if  it  were  an  enemy,  and  tearing  the  scalp  from 
the  head  of  the  imaginary  victim.  Warrior  after  war- 
rior follows  his  example,  until  the  whole  assembly,  as 
if  fired  with  sudden  frenzy,  rush  together  into  the 
ring,  leaping,  stamping,  and  whooping,  brandishing 
knives  and  hatchets  in  the  fire  light,  hacking  and 
stabbing  the  air,  and  working  themselves  into  the 
fury  of  battle,  while  at  intervals  they  all  break  forth 
into  a  burst  of  ferocious  yells,  which  sounds  for  miles 
away  over  the  lonely,  midnight  forest.      >  -•'    ;  .-     -^ 

In  the  morning,  the  warriors  prepare  to  depart. 
They  leave  the  camp  in  single  file,  still  decorated  in 
all  their  finery  of  paint,  feathers,  and  scalp-locks ;  and 
as  they  enter  the  woods,  the  chief  fires  his  gun,  the 
warrior  behind  follows  his  example,  and  the  discharges 
pass  in  slow  succession  from  front  to  rear,  the  salute 
concluding  with  a  general  whoop.     They  encamp  at  no 


L.5I 


I    :    I 


176 


INDIAN  PREPABATION. 


[Chap.  VIH. 


great  distance  from  the  village,  and  divest  themselves 
of  their  much-valued  ornaments,  which  are  carried 
back  by  the  women,  who  have  followed  them  for  this 
purpose.  The  warriors  pursue  their  journey,  clad  in 
the  rough  attire  of  hard  service,  and  move  silently 
and  ste^thily  through  the  forest  towards  the  hapless 
garrison,  or  defenceless  settlement,  which  they  have 
marked  as  their  prey. 

The  woods  were  now  filled  with  war-parties  such 
as  this,  and  soon  the  first  tokens  of  the  approaching 
tempest  began  to  alarm  the  unhappy  settlers  of  the 
frontier.  Al  first,  some  trader  or  hunter,  weak  and 
emaciated,  would  come  in  from  the  forest,  and  relate 
that  his  companions  had  been  butchered  in  the  In- 
dian villages,  and  that  he  alone  had  escaped.  Next 
succeeded  vague  and  uncertain  rumors  of  forts  at- 
tacked and  garrisons  slaughtered;  and  soon  after,  a 
report  gained  ground  that  every  post  throughout  the 
Indian  country  had  been  taken,  and  every  soldier 
killed.  Close  upon  these  tidings  came  the  enemy 
himself  The  Indian  war^parties  broke  out  of  the 
woods  like  gangs  of  wolves,  murdering,  burning,  and 
laying  waste,  while  himdreds  of  terror-stricken  families, 
abandoning  their  homis,  fled  for  refuge  towards  the 
older  settlements,  and  all  was  misery  and  ruin. 

Passing  over,  for  the  present,  this  portion  of  the 
war,  we  will  penetrate  at  once  into  the  heart  of  the 
Indian  coimtry,  and  observe  those  passages  of  the 
conflict  which  took  place  under  the  auspices  of  Pon- 
tiac  himself — the  siege  of  Detroit,  and  the  capture 
of  the  interior  posts  and  garrisons.  f  ^ri 


'f'f 


,.   \ 


s,y 


■■i.^^?i.s■ 


fmk 


CHAPTER    IX. 


n. 


m 


THE   COUNCIL   AT   THE   RIVER   ECORCES. 


H« 


To  begin  the  war  was  reserved  by  Pontiac  as  his  own 
peculiar  privilege.  With  the  first  opening  of  spring 
his  preparations  were  complete.  His  light-footed  mes- 
sengers, with  their  wampiun  belts  and  gifts  of  tobacco, 
visited  many  a  lonely  hunting  camp  in  the  gloom  of 
the  northern  woods,  and  called  chiefs  and  warriors  to 
attend  the  general  meeting.  The  appointed  spot  was 
on  the  banks  of  the  little  River  Ecorces,  not  far  from 
Detroit.  Thither  went  Pontiac  himself,  with  his  squaws 
and  his  children.  Band  after  band  came  straggling  in 
from  every  side,  until  the  meadow  was  thickly  dotted 
with  their  slender  wigwams.^  Here  were  idle  warriors 
smoking  and  laughing  in  groups,  or  beguiling  the  lazy 
hours  with  gambling,  with  feasting,  or  with  doubtful 
stories  of  their  own  martial  exploits.  Here  were 
youthful  gallants,  bedizened  with  all  the  foppery  of 
beads,  feathers,  and  hawk's  bells,  but  held  as  yet  in 
Hght  esteem,  since  they  had  slain  no  enemy,  and  taken 
no  scalp.  Here  also  were  young  damsels,  radiant  with 
bears'  oil,  ruddy  with  vermilion,  and  versed  in  all  the 
arts  of  forest  coquetry  ;  shrivelled  hags,  vdth  limbs  of 
wire,  and  voices  like  those  of  screech-owls ;  and  troops 


'<  ; 


1  ?! 


J  Pontiac  MS.    See  Appendix,  C. 


23 


m 


Ill 


178 


THE  COUNCIL. 


[Chap.  IX. 


of  naked  children,  with  small,  black,  mischievous  eyes, 
roaming  along  the  outskirts  of  the  woods. 

The  great  Roman  historian  observes  of  the  ancient 
Germans,  that  when  summoned  to  a  public  meeting, 
they  would  lag  behind  the  appointed  time  in  order  to 
show  their  independence.     The  remark  holds  true,  and 
perhaps  with  greater  emphasis,  of  the  American   In- 
dians ;  and  thus  it  happened,  that  several  days  elapsed 
before  the  assembly  was  complete.     In  such  a  motley 
concourse  of  barbarians,  where  different  bands  and  dif- 
ferent tribes  were  mustered  on  one  common  camping 
ground,  it  would  need  all  the  art  of  a  prudent  leader 
to  prevent  their  dormant  jealousies  from  starting  into 
open  strife.    No  people  are  more  prompt  to  quarrel, 
and  none  more  prone,  in  the  fierce  excitement  of  the 
present,   to  forget  the  purpose   of   the   future;   yet, 
through  good  fortune,  or  the  wisdom  of  Pontiac,  no 
rupture  occurred;  and  at  length  the  last  loiterer  ap- 
peared, and  farther  delay^was  needless. 
tiThe  coimcil  took  place  on  the  twenty-seventh  of 
April.     On  that  morning,  several  old  men,  the  heralds 
of  the  camp,  passed  to  and  fro  among  the  lodges,  call- 
ing the  warriors,  in  a  loud  voice,  to  attend  the  meeting. 
ix  In  accordance  with  the  summons,  they  came  issuing 
from  their  cabins  —  the  tall,  naked  figures  of  the  wild 
Ojibwas,  with  quivers  slung  at  their  backs,  and  light 
war-clubs  resting  in  the  hollow  of  their  arms;  Otta- 
was,  wrapped  close  in   their  gaudy  blankets;   Wyan- 
dots,  fluttering  in  painted  shirts,  their  heads  adorned 
with  feathers,  and  their  leggins  garnished  with  bells. 
All  were  soon  seated  in  a  wide  circle  upon  the  grass, 
row  within  row,  a  grave  and  silent  assembly.     Each 
savage  countenance  seemed  carved  in  wood,  and  none 
could  have  detected  the  deep  and  fiery  passions  hidden 


Chap.  IX.] 


SPEECH  OP  PONTIAC. 


179 


beneath  that  immovable  exterior.  Pipes  with  orna- 
mented stems  were  lighted,  and  passed  from  hand  to 
hand. 

Then  Pontiac  rose,  and  walked  forward  into  the 
midst  of  the  council.  According  to  Canadian  tradi- 
tion, he  was  not  above  the  middle  height,  though  his 
muscular  figure  was  cast  in  a  mould  of  remarkable 
symmetry  and  vigor.  His  complexion  was  darker  than 
is  usual  with  his  race,  and  his  features,  though  by  no 
means  regular,  had  a  bold  and  stem  expression,  while 
his  habitual  bearing  was  imperious  and  peremptory^  ^  > 
like  that  of  a  man  accustomed  to  sweep  away  all  oppo- 
sition by  the  force  of  his  impetuous  will.  His  ordi- 
nary attire  was  that  of  the  primitive  savage  —  a  scanty 
cincture  girt  about  his  loins,  and  his  long,  black  hair 
flowing  loosely  at  his  back  ;  but  on  occasions  like  this, 
.  he  was  wont  to  appear  as  befitted  his  power  and  char- 
acter, and  he  stood  before  the  council  plumed  and 
painted  in  the  full  costume  of$^ar. 

Looking  round  upon  his  wild  auditors,  he  began  to 
speak,  with  fierce  gesture,  and  loud,  impassioned  voice ; 
and  at  every  pause,  deep  guttural  ejaculations  of  assent 
and  approval  responded  to  his  words.  He  inveighed 
against  the  arrogance,  rapacity,  and  injustice  of  the 
English,  and  contrasted  them  with  the  French,  whom 
they  had  driven  from  the  soil.  He  declared  that  the 
British  commandant  had  treated  him  with  neglect  and 
contempt ;  that  the  soldiers  of  the  garrison  had  foully 
abused  the  Indians ;  and  that  one  of  them  had  struck 
a  follower  of  his  own.  He  represented  the  danger  that 
would  arise  from  the  supremacy  of  the  English.  They 
had  expelled  the  French,  and  now  they  only  waited  for 
a  pretext  to  turn  upon  the  Indians  and  destroy  them. 
Then,  holding  out  a  broad  belt  of  wampum,  he  told 


«■ 


180 


THE  COUNCIL. 


[Chap.  IX. 


•I 


the  council  that  he  had  received  it  from  theu*  great 
father  the  King  of  France,  in  token  that  he  had  heard 
the  voice  of  his  red  children ;  that  his  sleep  was  at  an 
end;  and  that  his  great  war-canoes  would  soon  sail  up 
the  St.  Lawrence,  to  win  back  Canada,  and  wreak  ven- 
geance on  his  enemies.  The  Indians  and  their  French 
brethren  should  fight  once  more  side  by  side,  as  they 
•had  always  fought ;  they  should  strike  the  English  as 
they  had  struck  them  many  moons  ago,  when  their 
great  army  marched  down  the  Monongahela,  and  they 
had  shot  them  from  their  ambush,  like  a  flock  of 
pigeons  in  the  woods. 

Having  roused  in  his  warlike  listeners  their  native 
thirst  for  blood  and  vengeance,  he  next  addressed  him- 
self to  their  superstition,  and  told  the  following  tale. 
Its  precise  origin  is  not  easy  to  determine.  It  is  pos- 
sible that  the  Delaware  prophet,  mentioned  in  a  former 
chapter,  may  have  had  some  part  in  it;  or  it  might 
have  been  the  offspring  of  Pontiac's  heated  imagina- 
tion, during  his  period  of  fasting  and  dreaming.  That 
he  deliberately  invented  it  for  the  sake  of  the  effect  it 
would  produce,  is  the  least  probable  conclusion  of  all ; 
for  it  evidently  proceeds  from  the  superstitious  mind  of 
an  Indian,  brooding  upon  the  evil  days  in  which  his 
lot  was  cast,  and  turning  for  relief  to  the  mysterious 
Author  of  his  being.  It  is,  at  all  events,  a  characteris- 
tic specimen  of  the  Indian  legendary  tales,  and,  like 
many  of  them,  bears  an  allegoric  significancy.  Yet 
he  who  endeavors  to  interpret  an  Indian  allegory 
through  all  its  erratic  windings  and  puerile  inconsis- 
tencies, has  undertaken  no  easy  or  enviable  task. 
*  "  A  Delaware  Indian,"  said  Pontiac,  "  conceived  an 
eager  desire  to  leam  wisdom  from  the  Master  of  Life ; 
but,  being  ignorant  where  to  find  him,  he  had  recourse 


Irt 


Chap.  IX.] 


ALLEGOBT  OF  THE  DELAWABE. 


181 


to  fasting,  dreaming,  and  magical  incantations.  By 
these  means  it  was  revealed  to  hhn,  that  by  moving  for- 
ward in  a  straight,  undeviating  course,  he  would  reach 
the  abode  of  the  Great  Spirit.  He  told  his  purpose  to 
no  one,  and  having  provided  the  equipments  of  a 
hunter,  —  gun,  powder-horn,  ammimition,  and  a  kettle 
for  preparing  his  food,  —  he  set  forth  on  his  errand. 
For  some  time  he  journeyed  on  in  high  hope  and  confi- 
dence. On  the  evening  of  the  eighth  day,  he  stopped 
by  the  side  of  a  brook  at  the  edge  of  a  small  prairie, 
where  he  began  to  make  ready  his  evening  meal,  when, 
looking  up,  he  saw  three  large  openings  in  the  woods 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  meadow,  and  three  well- 
beaten  paths  which  entered  them.  He  was  much  sur- 
prised; but  his  wonder  increased  when,  after  it  had 
grown  dark,  the  three  paths  were  more  clearly  visible 
than  ever.  Remembering  the  important  object  of  his 
journey,  he  could  neither  rest  nor  sleep ;  and,  leaving 
his  fire,  he  crossed  the  meadow,  and  entered  the  largest 
of  the  three  openings.  He  had  advanced  but  a  short 
distance  into  the  forest,  when  a  bright  flame  sprang  out 
of  the  ground  before  him,  and  arrested  his  steps.  In 
great  amazement,  he  turned  back,  and  entered  the  sec- 
ond path,  where  the  same  wonderful  phenomenon  again 
encountered  him ;  and  now,  in  terror  and  bewilderment, 
yet  still  resolved  to  persevere,  he  pursued  the  last  of 
the  three  paths.  On  this  he  journeyed  a  whole  day 
without  interruption,  when  at  length,  emerging  from 
the  forest,  he  saw  before  him  a  vast  moimtain,  of 
dazzling  whiteness.  So  precipitous  was  the  ascent, 
that  the  Indian  thought  it  hopeless  to  go  farther,  and 
looked  around  him  in  despair :  at  that  moment,  he  saw, 
seated  at  some  distance  above,  the  figure  of  a  beautiful 
woman  arrayed  in  white,  who  arose  as  he  looked  upon 


\  • 


!     ' 


182 


THE  COUNCIL. 


[Cnxp.  IX. 


her,  and  thus  accosted  him :  '  How  can  you  hope,  en- 
cumbered as  you  are,  to  succeed  in  yoiu-  design  ]  Go 
down  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  throw  away  your 
gun,  your  ammunition,  your  provisions,  and  your  cloth- 
ing ;  wash  yourself  in  the  stream  which  flows  there, 
and  you  will  then  be  prepared  to  stand  before  the 
Master  of  Life.'  The  Indian  obeyed,  and  again  began 
to  ascend  among  the  rocks,  while  the  woman,  seeing 
him  ptill  discouraged,  laughed  at  his  faintness  of  heart, 
and  told  him  that,  if  he  wished  for  success,  he  must 
climb  by  the  aid  of  one  hand  and  one  foot  only.  After 
great  toil  and  suffering,  he  at  length  found  himself  at 
the  summit.  Tlie  woman  had  disappeared,  and  he  was 
left  alone.  A  rich  and  beautiful  plain  lay  before  him, 
and  at  a  little  distance  he  saw  three  great  villages,  far 
superior  to  the  squalid  dwellings  of  the  Delawares. 
As  he  approached  the  largest,  and  stood  hesitating 
whether  he  should  enter,  a  man  gorgeously  attired 
stepped  forth,  and,  taking  him  by  the  hand,  welcomed 
him  to  the  celestial  abode. "  He  then  conducted  him 
into  the  presence  of  the  Great  Spirit,  where  the  Indian 
stood  confounded  at  the  imspeakable  splendor  which 
surrounded  him.  The  Great  Spirit  bade  him  be  seated, 
and  thus  addressed  him :  — 

" '  I  am  the  Maker  of  heaven  and  earth,  the  trees, 
lakes,  rivers,  and  all  things  else.  I  am  the  Maker  of 
mankind;  and  because  I  love  you,  you  must  do  my 
^vill.  The  land  on  which  you  live  I  have  made  for 
you,  and  not  for  others.  Why  do  you  suffer  the  white 
men  to  dwell  among  youl  My  children,  you  have  for- 
gotten the  customs  and  traditions  of  your  forefathers. 
Why  do  you  not  clothe  yourselves  in  skins,  as  they  did, 
and  use  the  bows  and  arrows,  and  the  stone-pointed 
lances,  which  they  used]    You  have  bought  guns, 


Chap.  IX.] 


ALLEGORY  OF  THE  DELAWARE. 


183 


knives,  kettles,  and  blankets  from  the  white  men, 
until  you  can  no  longer  do  without  them;  and  what 
is  worse,  you  have  drunk  the  poison  fire-water,  which 
turns  you  into  fools.  Fling  all  these  things  away; 
Uve  as  your  wise  forefathers  lived  before  you.  And  as 
for  these  English,  —  these  dogs  dressed  in  red,  who  have 
come  to  rob  you  of  your  hunting-grounds,  and  drive 
away  the  game,  —  you  must  lift  the  hatchet  against 
them.  Wipe  them  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  then 
you  will  win  my  favor  back  again,  and  once  more  be 
happy  and  prosperous.  The  children  of  your  great 
father,  the  King  of  France,  are  not  like  the  English. 
Never  forget  that  they  are  your  brethren.  They  are 
very  dear  to  me,  for  they  love  the  red  men,  and  under- 
stand the  true  mode  of  worshipping  me.' " 

The  Great  Spirit  next  instructed  his  hearer  in  va- 
rious precepts  of  morality  and  religion,  such  as  the 
prohibition  to  marry  more  than  one  wife,  and  a  warn- 
ing against  the  practice  of  magic,  which  is  worship- 
ping the  de^dl.  A  prayer,  embodying  the  substance 
of  all  that  he  had  heard,  was  then  presented  to  the 
Delaware.  It  was  cut  in  hieroglyphics  upon  a  wooden 
stick,  after  the  custom  of  his  people,  and  he  was 
directed  to  send  copies  of  it  to  all  the  Indian  vil- 
lages.* ='  :k«  '^:-:}i,iyi 


..  ','t\.H  ._^;: 


The  adventurer  now  departed,  and,  returning  to  the 
earth,  reported  all  the  wonders  he  had  seen  in  the 
celestial  regions.  ^  .>. 

Such  was  the  tale  told  by  Pontiac  to  the  council; 
and  it  is  worthy  of  notice,  that  not  he  alone,  but 


1  Pontiac  MS.  —  M'Dougal  MSS.  writes  on  the  authority  of  Canadians, 

M'Dougal  states  tliat  he  derived  his  some  of  whom  were  present  at  the 

information  from  an  Indian.    The  an-  council, 
thor  of  the   Pontiac   MS.  probably 


\  ; 


1     *■ 


(i-i 


Ift  I']* 


184 


THE  COUNCIL. 


[Chap.  IX. 


many  of  the  greatest  men  who  have  arisen  among  the 
Indians,  have  been  opponents  of  civilization,  and 
stanch  advocates  of  primitive  barbarism.  Red  Jacket 
and  Tecumseh  would  gladly  have  brought  back  their 
people  to  the  wild  simplicity  of  their  original  con- 
dition. There  is  nothing  progressive  in  the  rigid,  in- 
flexible nature  of  an  Indian.  He  will  not  open  his 
mind  to  the  idea  of  improvement,  and  nearly  every 
change  that  has  been  forced  upon  him  has  been  a 
change  for  the  worse. 

Many  other  speeches  were  doubtless  made  in  the 
council,  but  no  record  of  them  has  been  preserved. 
All  present  were  eager  to  attack  the  British  fort,  and 
Pontiac  told  them,  in  conclusion,  that  on  the  second 
of  May  he  would  gain  admittance  with  a  party  of  his 
warriors,  on  pretence  of  dancing  the  calumet  dance 
before  the  garrison;  that  they  would  take  note  of 
the  strength  of  the  fortification;  and,  this  information 
gained,  he  would  summon  another  council  to  determine 
the  mode  of  attack. 

The  assembly  now  dissolved,  and  all  the  evening  the 
women  were  employed  in  loading  the  canoes,  which 
were  drawn  up  on  the  bank  of  the  stream.  The  en- 
campments broke  up  at  so  early  an  hour,  that  when 
the  sun  rose,  the  savage  swarm  had  melted  away ;  the 
secludfed  scene  was  restored  to  its  wonted  silence  and 
solitude,  and  nothing  remained  but  the  slender  frame- 
work of  several  hundred  cabins,  with  fragments  of 
broken  utensils,  pieces  of  cloth,  and  scraps  of  hide, 
scattered  over  the  trampled  grass,  while  the  moulder- 
ing embers  of  numberless  fires  mingled  their  dark 
smoke  with  the  white  mist  which  rose  from  the  little 


nver. 


Every  spring,  after  the  winter  hunt  was  over,  the 


Chap.  DL] 


THE  CALUMET  DANCE. 


185 


Indians  were  accustomed  to  return  to  their  villages, 
or  permanent  encampments,  in  the  vicinity  of  Detroit ; 
and,  accordingly,  after  the  council  had  hroken  up, 
they  made  their  appearance  as  usual  ahout  the  fort. 
On  the  first  of  May,  Pontiac  came  to  the  gate  with 
forty  men  of  the  Ottawa  tribe,  and  asked  permission 
to  enter  and  dance  the  calumet  dance,  before  the 
officers  of  the  garrison.  After  some  hesitation,  he  was 
admitted ;  and  proceeding  to  the  comer  of  the  street, 
where  stood  the  house  of  the  commandant.  Major 
Gladwyn,  he  and  thirty  of  his  warriors  began  their 
dance,  each  recounting  his  own  valiant  exploits,  and 
boasting  himself  the  bravest  of  mankind.  The  officers 
and  men  gathered  around  them;  while,  in  the  mean 
time,  the  remaining  ten  of  the  Ottawas  strolled  about 
the  fort,  observing  every  thing  it  contained.  When 
the  dance  was  over,  they  all  quietly  withdrew,  not  a 
suspicion  of  their  sinister  design  having  arisen  in  the 
minds  of  the  EngUsh.^ 

After  a  few  days  had  elapsed,  Pontiac's  messengers 
again  passed  among  the  Indian  cabins,  calling  the 
principal  chiefs  to  another  council,  in  the  Pottawatta- 
mie village.  Here  there  was  a  large  structure  of 
bark,  erected  for  the  public  use  on  occasions  like  the 
present.  A  hundred  chiefs  were  seated  around  this 
dusky  council-house,  the  fire  in  the  centre  shedding 
its  fitful  light  upon  their  dark,  naked  forms,  while 
the  sacred  pipe  passed  from  hand  to  hand.  To 
prevent  interruption,  Pontiac  had  stationed  young 
men,  as  sentinels,  near  the  house.  He  once  more  ad- 
dressed the  chiefs,  inciting  them  to  hostility  against 
the  English,  and  concluding  by  the  proposal  of  his 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


24 


\, 


:'t  ,'' 


4:1 


166 


THE  COUNCIL. 


[Cmxw.  a. 


plan  for  dNrtmying  Detroit  It  was  as  follows :  Fon- 
tiac  would  (Irmarid  a  council  with  the  commaudant 
concerning  mattor^  of  great  importance;  and  on  this 
pretext  he  flattered  himself  that  he  and  H  is  princi- 
pal chiefs  would  gain  ready  admittance  within  the 
fort  They  wcO  all  to  carry  weapons  concealed  he> 
neath  their  blankets.  While  in  the  act  of  addressing 
the  commandant  in  the  council-room,  Pontiac  was  to 
make  a  certain  signal,  upon  which  the  chiefs  were  to 
raise  the  war-whoop,  rush  upon  the  officers  preser  t, 
and  "trike  them  down.  The  other  Indians,  wfMing 
meanwhile  at  the  gate,  or  loitering  among  the  h'  r  '  j, 
on  hearing  the  yells  and  firing  within  tho  building, 
were  to  assail  the  astonished  and  half-armed  soldiers; 
and  thus  Detroit  would  fall  an  easy  prey.        '^ 

In  opening  this  plan  of  treachery,  Pontiac  spoke 
rather  as  a  counsellor  than  as  a  commander.  Haughty 
as  he  was,  he  had  too  much  sagacity  to  wound  the 
pride  of  a  body  of  men  over  whom  he  had  no  other 
control  than  r<<ac  derived  from  his  personal  character 
and  influence.  Nd  one  was  hardy  enough  to  venture 
opposition  to  the  proposal  of  their  great  leader.  His 
plan  was  eagerly  adopted.  Deep,  hoarse  ejaculations 
of  applause  echoed  his  speech;  and,  gathering  their 
blankets  around  them,  the  chiefs  withdrew  to  their 
respective  villages,  to  prepare  for  the  destruction  of 
the  unhappy  little  garrison. 


M 


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isi 


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Jill 


CHAPTER    X. 


DETROIT. 


•",  ^  -»■ 


#    '.:S    ' 


'     J. 


To  the  credulity  of  mankind  each  great  calamity 
has  its  dire  prognostics.  Signs  and  portents  in  the 
heavens,  the  vision  of  an  Indian  bow,  and  the  figure 
of  a  scalp  imprinted  on  the  disk  of  the  moon,  warned 
the  New  England  Puritans  of  impending  war.  The 
apparitions  passed  away,  and  Philip  of  Mount  Hope 
burst  from  the  forest  with  his  Narragansett  warriors. 
In  October,  1762,  thick  clouds  of  inky  blackness 
gathered  above  the  fort  and  settlement  of  Detroit. 
The  river  darkened  beneath  the  awful  shadows,  and 
the  forest  was  wrapped  in  double  gloom.  Drops  of 
rain  began  to  fall,  of  strong,  sulphurous  odor,  and  so 
deeply  colored  that  the  people,  it  is  said,  collected  and 
used  them  for  the  pui-pose  of  writing.^  A  prominent 
literary  and  philosophical  journal  seeks  to  explain  this 
strange  phenomenon  on  some  principle  of  j)hysical 
science ;  but  the  simple  Canadians  held  a  different 
faith.  Throughout  the  winter,  the  shower  of  black 
rain  was  the  foremost  topic  of  their  fireside  talk ;  and 
dreary  forebodings  of  evil  disturbed  the  breast  of 
many  a  timorous  matron.  '     '   ' 

La  Motte  Cadillac  was  the  founder  of  Detroit.     In 

»  Carver,  Travels,  153.    Gent.  Mag.  XXXIV.  408. 


n 


E  j     '^ ' 


i-. 

i  .  \i  5  :^: 

.  r  I*  ■ 

^■v; 
i!»;^ 

■:        •      r^ 

\ ' 

^if 

'    I 

mW 

■  f 

'^* 

I.M 

1.  :♦' 


188 


DETROIT. 


[Chap.  X. 


the  year  1701,  he  planted  the  little  militaiy  colony, 
which  time  has  transmuted  into  a  thriving  American 
city.^  At  an  earlier  date,  some  feeble  efforts  had  been 
made  to  secure  the  possession  of  this  important  pass ; 
and  when  La  Hontan  visited  the  lakes,  a  small  post, 
called  Fort  St.  Joseph,  was  standing  near  the  present 
site  of  Fort  Gratiot.  At  about  this  time,  the  wander- 
ing Jesuits  made  frequent  sojourns  upon  the  borders  of 
the  Detroit,  and  baptized  the  savage  children  whom 
they  found  there. 

Fort  St.  Joseph  was  abandoned  in  the  year  1688. 
The  establishment  of  Cadillac  was  destined  to  a  better 
fate,  and  soon  rose  to  distinguished  importance  arr.ong 
the  western  outposts  of  Canada.  Indeed,  the  site  w  s 
formed  by  nature  for  prosperity;  and  a  bad  gcveinment 
and  a  thriftless  people  could  not  prevent  the  increase 
of  the  colony.  At  the  close  of  the  French  war,  as 
Major  Rogers  tells  us,  the  place  contained  twenty-five 
hundred  inhabitants.^  The  centre  of  the  settlement 
was  the  fortified  town,  currently  called  the  Fort,  to 
distinguish  it  from  the  straggling  dwellings  along  the 
river  banks.  It  stood  on  the  western  margin  of  the 
river,  covering  a  small  part  of  the  ground  now  oc- 
cupied by  the  city  of  Detroit,  and  contained  about  a 
hundred  houses,  compactly  pressed  together,  and  sur- 
rounded by  a  palisade.  Both  above  and  below  the  fort, 
the  banks  of  the  stream  were  lined  on  both  sides  witli 
small  Canadian  dwellings,  extending  at  various  inter- 
vals for  nearly  eight  miles.  Eacli  had  its  garden  and 
its  orchard,  and  each  was  enclosed  by  a  fence  of 
rounded  pickets.  To  the  soldier  or  the  trader,  fresh 
from  the  harsh  scenery  and  ambushed   perils  of  tlie 


'  Memorial  of  La  Moite  Cadillac. 
See  Schoolcraft,  Oneota,  407. 


~  Rogers,  Account  of  North  Amer- 
ica, lt)8. 


Chap.  X.] 


ITS  OBIGIN  AND  HISTORY. 


m 


surrounding  wilds,  the   secluded   settlement  was  wel- 
come as  an  oasis  in  the  desert. 

The  Canadian  is  usually  a  happy  man.  Life  sits 
lightly  upon  him ;  he  laughs  at  its  hardships,  and  soon 
forgets  its  sorrows.  A  lover  of  roving  and  adventure, 
of  the  frolic  and  the  dance,  he  is  little  troubled  with 
thoughts  of  the  past  or  the  future,  and  little  plagued 
with  avarice  or  ambition.  At  Detroit,  all  his  propen- 
sities found  ample  scope.  Aloof  from  the  world,  the 
simple  colonists  shared  none  of  its  pleasures  and  ex- 
citements, and  were  free  from  many  of  its  cares.  Nor 
were  luxuries  wanting  which  civilization  might  haVe 
envied  them.  The  forests  teemed  with  game,  the 
marshes  with  wild  fowl,  and  the  rivers  with  fish.  The 
apples  and  pears  of  the  old  Canadian  orchards  are 
even  to  this  day  held  in  esteem.  The  poorer  inhab- 
itants made  wine  from  the  fruit  of  the  wild  grape, 
which  grew  profusely  in  the  woods,  while  the  wealthier 
class  procured  a  better  quality  from  Montreal,  in  ex- 
change for  the  canoe  loads  of  furs  which  they  sent 
down  with  every  year.  Here,  as  elsewhere  in  Canada, 
the  long  winter  was  a  season  of  social  enjoyment ;  and 
when,  in  summer  and  autumn,  the  traders  and  voy- 
ageiu's,  the  coureurs  des  hois^  and  half-breeds,  gathered 
from  the  distant  forests  of  the  north-west,  the  whole 
settlement  was  alive  with  frolic  gayety,  with  dancing 
and  feasting,  drinking,  gaming,  and  carousing. 

Within  the  limits  of  the  settlement  were  three  large 
Indian  villages.  On  the  western  shore,  a  little  below 
the  fort,  were  the  lodges  of  the  Pottawattamies ;  nearly 
opposite,  on  the  eastern  side,  was  the  village  of  the 
Wyandots ;  and  on  the  same  side,  two  miles  higher  up, 
Pontiac's  band  of  Ottawas  had  fixed  their  abode.  The 
settlers  had  always  maintained  the  best  terms  with 


r- 


K 


I*  .At 


11 


190 


DETROIT. 


IChap.  X. 


m 


.'Mi         ■  ■■    51  jr 


their  savage  neighbors.  In  truth,  there  was  much 
congeniality  between  the  red  man  and  the  Canadian. 
TJjeir  harmony  was  seldom  broken;  and  among  the 
woods  and  wilds  of  the  northern  lakes  roamed  many 
a  lawless  half-breed,  the  mongrel  offspring  of  inter- 
marriages between  the  colonists  of  Detroit  and  the 
Indian  squaws. 

We  have  already  seen  how,  in  an  evil  hour  for  the 
Canadians,  a  party  of  British  troops  took  possession  of 
Detroit,  towards  the  close  of  the  year  1760.  The  Brit- 
ish garrison,  consisting  partly  of  regulars  and  partly  of 
provincial  rangers,  was  now  quartered  in  a  well-buUt 
range  of  barracks  within  the  town  or  fort.  The  latter, 
as  already  mentioned,  contained  about  a  hundred  small 
houses.  Its  form  was  nearly  square,  and  the  palisade 
which  surrounded  it  was  about  twenty-five  feet  high. 
At  each  comer  was  a  wooden  bastion,  and  a  block- 
house was  erected  over  each  gateway.  The  houses 
were  small,  chiefly  built  of  wood,  and  roofed  with  bark 
or  a  thatch  of  straw.  The  streets  also  were  extremely 
narrow,  though  a  Avide  passage  way,  knoAvn  as  the 
chemin  du  ronde,  surrounded  the  town  between  the 
houses  and  the  palisade.  Besides  the  barracks,  the 
only  public  buildings  were  a  council-house  and  a  rude 
little  church. 

The  garrison  consisted  of  a  hundred  and  twenty 
soldiers,  with  about  forty  fur-traders  and  engages ; 
but  the  latter,  as  well  as  the  peaceful  Canadian  in- 
habitants of  the  place,  could  little  be  trusted,  in  the 
event  of  an  Indian  outbreak.  Two  small  armed 
schooners,  the  Beaver  and  the  GladwjTi,  lay  anchored 
in  the  stream,  and  several  light  pieces  of  artillery 
were  mounted  in  the  bastions. 

Such  was  Detroit  —  a  place  whose  defences  could 


CiiAP.X.]     PONTIAC  — HIS  AMBITION— HIS  PATRIOTISM.    19 1 

have  opposed  no  resistance  to  a  civilized  enemy;  and 
yet,  situated  as  it  was,  far  removed  from  the  hope  of 
speedy  succor,  it  could  only  rely,  in  the  terrible  stni|;- 
gles  that  awaited  it,  upon  its  own  slight  strength  and 
feeble  resources.* 

Standing  on  the  water  bastion  of  Detroit,  the  land- 
scape that  presented  itself  might  well  remain  impressed 
through  life  upon  the  memory.  The  river,  about  half 
a  mile  wide,  almost  washed  the  foot  of  the  stockade ; 
and  either  bank  was  lined  with  the  white  Canadian 
cottages.  The  joyous  sparkling  of  the  bright  blue 
water ;  the  green  luxuriance  of  the  woods ;  the  white 
dwellings,  looking  out  from  the  foliage;  and  in  the 
distance,  the  Indian  wigwams  curling  their  smoke 
against  the  sky,  —  all  were  mingled  in  one  great 
scene  of  wild  and  rural  beauty. 

Pontiac,  the  Satan  of  this  forest  paradise,  was  ac- 
customed to  spend  the  early  part  of  the  summer  upon 
a  small  island  at  the  opening  of  the  Lake  St.  Clair, 
hidden  from  view  by  the  high  woods  that  covered 
the  intervening  Isle  au  Cochon.**  "The  king  and 
lord  of  all  this  country,"  as  Eogers  calls  him,  lived 
in  no  royal  state.  His  cabin  was  a  small,  oven-shaped 
structure  of  bark  and  rushes.  Here  he  dwelt  with 
his  squaws  and  children ;  and  here,  doubtless,  he  might 
often  have  been  seen,  carelessly  reclining  his  naked 
form  on  a  rush  mat,  or  a  bear-skin,  lilie  any  ordinary 
v/arrior.  We  may  fancy  the  current  of  his  thoughts, 
the  uncurbed  passions   swelling  in  his  powerful  soul, 


1  Croghan,  Journal.  Rogers,  Ac- 
count of  North  America,  168.  Va- 
rious MS.  Joumala,  Letters,  and 
Plans  have  also  been  consulted.  The 
regular  fortification,  which,  within  the 
recollection  of  many  now  living,  cov- 
ered tlie  ground  in  tlio  rear  of  the  old 


to^^Ti  of  Detroit,  was  erected  at  a 
date  subsequent  to  the  period  of  this 
histonr. 

2  Tradition,  communicated  to  H. 
R.  Schoolcraft,  Esq.,  by  Henry  Con- 
ner, formerly  Indian  interpreter  at 
Detroit. 


■    ! 


192 


DETROIT. 


[Chap.  X. 


as  he  revolved  the  treacheries  which,  to  his  savage 
mind,  seemed  fair  and  honorable.  At  one  moment, 
Mb  fierce  heart  would  bum  with  the  anticipation  of 
vengeance  on  the  detested  English;  at  another,  he 
would  meditate  how  he  best  might  turn  the  approach- 
ing tumults  to  the  furtherance  of  his  own  ambitious 
schemes.  Yet  we  may  believe  that  Pontiac  was  not 
a  stranger  to  the  high  emotion  of  the  patriot  hero, 
the  champion  not  merely  of  his  nation's  rights,  but 
of  the  very  existence  of  his  race.  He  did  not 
dream  how  desperate  a  game  he  was  about  to  play. 
He  hourly  flattered  himself  with  the  futile  hope  of 
aid  from  France.  In  his  ignorance,  he  thought  that 
the  British  colonies  must  give  way  before  the  rush 
of  his  savage  warriors;  when,  in  truth,  all  the  com- 
bined tribes  of  the  forest  might  have  chafed  in  vain 
rage  against  the  rock-like  strength  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxon. 

Looking  across  an  intervening  arm  of  the  river, 
Pontiac  could  see  on  its  eastern  bank  the  numerous 
lodges  of  his  Ottawa  tribesmen,  half  hidden  among 
the  ragged  growth  of  trees  and  bushes.  On  the 
afternoon  of  the  fifth  of  May,  a  Canadian  woman, 
the  wife  of  St.  Aubin,  one  of  the  principal  settlers, 
crossed  over  from  the  western  side,  and  visited  the 
Ottawa  village,  to  obtain  from  the  Indians  a  supply 
of  maple  sugar  and  venison.  She  was  surprised  at 
finding  several  of  the  warriors  engaged  in  filing  off 
the  muzzles  of  their  guns,  so  as  to  reduce  them,  stock 
and  all,  to  the  length  of  about  a  yard.  Returning 
home  in  the  evening,  she  mentioned  what  she  had 
seen  to  several  of  her  neighbors.  Upon  this,  one  of 
them,  the  blacksmith  of  the  village,  remarked  that 
many  of  the  Indians  had  lately  visited  his  shop,  and 


Chap.  X-l 


THE  PLOT  REVEALED. 


193 


attempted  to  borrow  files  and  saws  for  a  purpose  which 
they  would  not  explain.^  These  circumstances  excited 
the  suspicion  of  the  experienced  Canadians.  Doubt- 
less there  were  many  in  the  settlement  who  might, 
had  they  chosen,  have  revealed  the  plot ;  but  it  is  no 
less  certain  that  the  more  numerous  and  respectable 
class  in  the  little  community  had  too  deep  an  inter- 
est in  the  preservation  of  peace  to  countenance  the 
designs  of  Pontiac.  M.  Gouin,  an  old  and  wealthy 
settler,  went  to  the  commandant,  and  conjured  him  to 
stand  upon  his  guard ;  but  Gladwyn,  a  man  of  fear- 
less temper,  gave  no  heed  to  the  friendly  advice.** 

In  the  Pottawattamie  village  lived  an  Ojibwa  girl, 
who,  if  there  be  truth  in  tradition,  could  boast  a 
larger  share  of  beauty  than  is  common  in  the  wig- 
wam. She  had  attracted  the  eye  of  Gladwyn.  He 
had  formed  a  connection  with  her,  and  she  had  be- 
come much  attached  to  him.  On  the  afternoon  of 
the  sixth,  Catharine — for  so  the  officers  called  her — 
came  to  the  fort,  and  repaired  to  Gladwyn's  quarters, 
bringing  with  her  a  pair  of  elk-skin  moccasons,  orna- 
mented with  porcupine  work,  which  he  had  requested 
her  to  make.  There  was  something  unusual  in  her 
look  and  manner.  Her  face  was  sad  and  downcast. 
She  said  little,  and  soon  left  the  room;  but  the  sen- 
tinel at  the  door  saw  her  still  lingering  at  the  street 
corner,  though  the  hour  for  closing  the  gates  was 
nearly  come.  At  length  she  attracted  the  notice  of 
Gladwyn  himself;  and  calling  her  to  him,  he  pressed 
her  to  declare  what  was  weighmg  upon  her  mind. 
Still  she  remained  for  a  long  time  sUent,  and  it  was 


1  St  Aubin's  Account,  MS.    See  Appendix,  C. 

2  Gouin's  Account,  MS. 

25  Q 


,. 


IS 


^5  • 


'   i 


^♦1 


194 


DETROIT. 


[CUAP.  X. 


only  after  much  urgency  and  many  promises  not  to 
betray  her,  that  she  revealed  her  momentous  secret. 

To-morrow,  she  said,  Pontiac  will  come  to  the  fort 
with  sixty  of  his  chiefs.  Each  will  be  armed  with 
a  gun,  cut  short,  and  hidden  under  his  blanket. 
Pontiac  will  demand  to  hold  a  council ;  and  after  he 
has  delivered  his  speech,  he  will  offer  a  peace-belt  of 
wampum,  holding  it  in  a  reversed  position.  This  will 
be  the  signal  of  attack.  The  chiefs  will  spring  up 
and  fire  upon  the  officers,  and  the  Indians  in  the 
street  will  fall  upon  the  garrison.  Every  Englishman 
will  be  killed,  but  not  the  scalp  of  a  single  French- 
man will  be  touched.^ 

Gladwyn  was  an  officer  of  signal  courage  and  ad- 
dress. He  thanked  his  faithful  mistress,  and,  promis- 
ing a  rich  reward,  told  her  to  go  back  to  her  village, 
that  no  suspicion  might  be  kindled  against  her.  Then, 
calling  his  subordinates  together,  he  imparted  what 
he  had  heard.  The  defences  of  the  place  were  feeble 
and  extensive,  and  the  garrison  by  far  too  weak  to 
repel  a  general  assault.  The  force  of  the  Indians  at 
this  time  is  variously  estimated  at  from  six  hundred 
to  two  thousand ;  and  the  commandant  greatly  feared 
that  some  wild  impulse  might  precipitate  their  plan, 
and  that  they  would  storm  the  fort  before  the  morn- 
ing. Every  preparation  was  made  to  meet  the  sudden 
emergency.  Half  the  garrison  were  ordered  under 
arms,  and  all  the  officers  prepared  to  spend  the  night 
upon  the  ramparts. 

"  It  rained  all  day,"  writes  the  chronicler,  "  but 
cleared  up   towards  evening,  and  there  was   a  very 

1  Letter  to  the  writer  from  II.  R.    interpreter,  Henry  Conner.  See,  also, 
Schoolcraft,  Esq.,  containing  the  tra-    Carver,  Travels,  155,  (Lond.  177j?,) 
ditional  account  from  the  lips  of  the 


serene 
The 
Only  a 
darkeni 
night 
dians 
dawn, 
palisade 
of  the 
their   i 
wonted 
Again 


CUAP.  X.] 


A  NIGHT  OF  ANXIETY, 


195 


fair  sunset."  Perhaps  it  was  such  an  one  as  e\pn 
now,  when  all  else  is  changed,  may  still  be  seen  . 
times  from  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Detroit.  A  canopy 
of  clouds  is  spread  across  the  sky,  drawn  up  from 
the  horizon  like  a  curtain,  as  if  to  reveal  the  glory 
of  the  west,  where  lies  a  transparent  sea  of  liquid 
amber  immeasurably  deep.  The  sun  has  set ;  the  last 
glimpse  of  his  burning  disk  has  vanished  behind  the 
forest ;  but  where  he  sank,  the  sky  glows  like  a  con- 
flagration, and  still,  from  his  retreat,  he  bathes  heaven 
and  earth  with  celestial  coloring.  The  edges  of  the 
cloudy  curtain  are  resplendent  with  gold,  and  its  dark 
blue  drapery  is  touched  with  blood-red  stains  by  the 
floods  of  fiery  radiance.  The  forests  and  the  shores 
melt  together  in  rich  and  shadowy  purple,  and  the 
waters  reflect  the  splendor  of  the  heavens.  Gazing  on 
the  gorgeous  sublimity  of  earth  and  sky,  man  may 
forget  his  vexed  and  perturbed  humanity.  Goaded  by 
passions,  racked  by  vain  desires,  tossed  on  the  tumul- 
tuous sea  of  earthly  troubles,  amid  doubt  and  disap- 
pointment, pain  and  care,  he  awakens  to  new  hope  as 
he  beholds  the  glory  of  declining  day,  and  rises  in 
serene  strength  to  meet  that  majestic  smile  of  God. 

The  light  departed,  and  the  colors  faded  away. 
Only  a  dusky  redness  lingered  in  the  west,  and  the 
darkening  earth  seemed  her  dull  self  again.  Then 
night  descended,  heavy  and  black,  on  the  fierce  In- 
dians and  the  sleepless  English.  From  sunset  till 
dawn,  an  anxious  watch  was  kept  from  the  slender 
palisades  of  Detroit.  The  soldiers  were  still  ignorant 
of  the  danger,  and  the  sentinels  did  not  know  why 
their  numbers  were  doubled,  or  why,  with  such  un- 
wonted vigilance,  their  officers  visited  their  posts. 
Again  and  again  Gladwyn  mounted  his  wooden  ram- 


I  I 

!:  f 

I  ! 
•:      I 


\     !*• 


196 


DETROIT. 


[CUAP.  X. 


parts  and  looked  forth  into  the  gloom.  There  seemed 
nothing  but  repose  and  peace  in  the  soft,  moist  air 
of  the  warm  spring  evening,  with  the  piping  of  frogs 
along  the  river  bank,  just  roused  from  their  torpor 
by  the  genial  influence  of  May.  But,  at  intervals,  as 
tlie  night  wind  swept  across  the  bastion,  it  bore  sounds 
of  fearful  portent  to  the  ear,  the  sullen  booming  of 
the  Indian  drum  and  the  wild  chorus  of  quavering 
yells,  as  the  warriors,  around  their  distant  camp-fires, 
danced  the  war-dance,  in  preparation  for  the  mor- 
row's work.*  ,     v 


1  MaxweU'B  Account,  MS.    See  Appendu ,  C. 


,  l\ 


■// 


CHAPTER    XI. 


TREACHERY    OF    PONTIAC. 


The  night  passed  without  alarm.  The  sun  rose 
upon  fresh  fields  and  newly  budding  woods,  and 
scarcely  had  the  morning  mists  dissolved,  when  the 
garrison  could  see  a  fleet  of  birch  canoes  crossing  the 
river  from  the  eastern  shore,  within  range  of  can- 
non shot  above  the  fort.  Only  two  or  three  warriors 
appeared  in  each,  but  all  moved  slowly,  and  seemed 
deeply  laden.  In  truth,  they  were  full  of  savages, 
lying  flat  on  their  faces,  that  their  numbers  might  not 
excite  the  suspicion  of  the  English.^ 

At  an  early  hour,  the  open  common  behind  the  fort 
was  thronged  with  squaws,  children,  and  warriors, 
some  naked,  and  others  fantastically  arrayed  in  their 
barbarous  finery.  All  seemed  restless  and  uneasy, 
moving  hither  and  thither,  in  apparent  preparation  for 
a  general  game  of  ball.  Many  tall  warriors,  wrapped 
in  their  blankets,  were  seen  stalking  towards  the  fort, 
and  casting  malignant  furtive  glances  upward  at  the 
palisades.  Then,  with  an  air  of  assumed  indifference, 
they  would  move  towards  the  gate.  They  were  all 
admitted ;  for  Gladwyn,  who  in  this  instance,  at  least, 
showed  some  knowledge  of  Indian  character,  chose  to 
convince  his  crafty  foe  that,  though  their  plot  was  de- 
tected, their  hostility  was  despised.^ 


C'i^'i 


U  i 


\   ■»•. 


1  Mnloche's  Account,  MS. 


a  Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1808. 


?!  '' 


198 


TREACIIEBY  OF  PONTIAC. 


(Chap.  XT. 


The  whole  ganison  was  ordered  under  aims.  Ster- 
ling, and  the  other  English  fur-traders,  closed  their 
storehouses  and  armed  their  men,  and  all  in  cool  con- 
fidence stood  waiting  the  result. 

^leanwhile,  Pontiac,  who  had  crossed  with  the  canoes 
from  the  eastern  shore,  was  approaching  along  the  river 
road,  at  the  head  of  his  sixty  chiefs,  all  gravely  march- 
ing in  Indian  file.  A  Canadian  settler,  named  Beaufait, 
had  been  that  morning  to  the  fort.  He  was  now  re- 
turning homewards,  and  as  he  reached  the  bridge 
which  led  over  the  stream  then  called  Parent's  Creek, 
he  saw  the  chiefs  in  the  act  of  crossing  from  the  farther 
bank.  He  stood  aside  to  give  them  room.  As  the  last 
Indian  passed,  Beaufait  recognized  him  as  an  old  friend 
and  associate.  The  savage  greeted  him  with  the  usual 
ejaculation,  opened  for  an  instant  the  folds  of  his 
blanket,  disclosed  the  hidden  gun,  and,  with  an  em- 
phatic gesture  towards  the  fort,  indicated  the  ferocious 
purpose  to  which  he  meant  to  apply  it.^ 

At  ten  o'clock,  the  great  war-chief,  with  his  treach- 
erous followers,  reached  the  fort,  and  the  gateway  was 
thronged  with  their  savage  faces.  AH  were  wrapped 
to  the  throat  in  colored  blankets.  Some  were  crested 
with  hawk,  eagle,  or  raven  plumes  ;  others  had  shaved 
their  heads,  leading  only  the  fluttering  scalp-lock  on 
the  crown  ;  while  others,  again,  wore  their  long,  black 
hair  flowing  loosely  at  their  backs,  or  wildly  hanging 
about  their  brows  like  a  lion's  mane.  Their  bold 
yet  crafty  features,  their  cheeks  besmeared  with  ochre 
and  vermilion,  white  lead  and  soot,  their  keen,  dce^)- 
set  eyes  gleaming  in  their  sockets,  like  those  of  rat- 
tlesnakes, gave   them    an    aspect   grim,  uncouth,  and 

1  Tliis   inciilcnt  was  related,  by    Sec  Cnss,  Discourse  before  the  Mich- 
t!ie  son  of  Beaufait,  to  General  Cass,     igun  Historical  Society,  30. 


Chaf.  XL] 


TIIE  PLOT  DEFEATED. 


199 


horrible.  For  the  most  part,  they  were  tall,  strong 
men,  and  all  had  a  gait  and  bearing  of  peculiar 
stateliness.  <      >    -^  ■  .  '  ■'      ■\ 

As  Pontiac  entered,  it  is  said  that  he  started,  and 
that  a  dc(^)  ejaculation  half  escaped  from  his  broad 
chest.  Well  might  his  stoicism  fail,  for  at  a  glance  he 
read  the  ruin  of  his  plot.  On  either  hand,  within  the 
gateway,  stood  ranks  of  soldiers  and  hedges  of  glitter- 
ing steel.  The  swarthy,  half-wild  engagts  of  the  fur- 
traders,  armed  to  the  teeth,  stood  in  groups  at  the 
street  comers,  and  the  measured  tap  of  a  di-um  fell 
ominously  on  the  ear.  Soon  regaining  his  composure, 
Pontiac  strode  forward  into  the  narrow  street,  and  his 
chiefs  filed  after  him  in  silence,  while  the  scared  faces 
of  women  and  children  looked  out  from  the  windows 
as  they  passed.  Their  rigid  muscles  betrayed  no  sign 
of  emotion ;  yet,  looking  closely,  one  might  have  seen 
their  small  eyes  glance  from  side  to  side  with  restless 
scrutiny. 

Traversing  the  entire  width  of  the  little  town,  they 
reached  the  door  of  the  council-house,  a  large  build- 
ing standing  near  the  margin  of  the  river.  Entering, 
they  saw  Gladwyn,  with  several  of  his  officers,  seated 
in  readiness  to  receive  them,  and  the  observant  chiefs 
did  not  fad  to  remark  that  every  Englishman  wore  a 
sword  at  his  side,  and  a  pair  of  pistols  in  his  belt. 
Tlie  conspirators  eyed  each  other  with  uneasy  glances. 
"  Why,"  demanded  Pontiac,  "  do  I  sec  so  many  of  my 
father's  young  men  standing  in  the  street  with  their 
guns  % "  Gladwyn  replied  through  his  interpreter.  La 
Butte,  that  he  had  ordered  the  soldiers  under  arms  for 
the  sake  of  exercise  and  discipline.  With  much  delay 
and  many  signs  of  distrust,  the  chiefs  at  length  sat 
down  on  the  mats  prepared  for  them;  and  after  the 


ii 


.   i 


1, 


1* 


•I, 


•Si. 


200 


TREACHERY  OF  TONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XI. 


customary  pause,  Pontiac  rose  to  speak.  Holding  in 
his  hand  the  wampum  belt  which  was  to  have  given 
the  fatal  signal,  he  addressed  the  commandant,  pro- 
fessing strong  attachment  to  the  English,  and  declar- 
ing, in  Indian  plirasc,  that  he  had  come  to  smoke 
the  pipe  of  peace,  and  brighten  the  chain  of  friend- 
ship. The  officers  watched  him  keenly  as  he  uttered 
these  hollow  words,  fearing  lest,  though  conscious  that 
his  designs  were  suspected,  he  might  still  attempt  to 
accomplish  them.  And  once,  it  is  said,  he  raised  the 
wampum  belt  as  if  about  to  give  the  signal  of  attack. 
But  at  that  instant,  Gladwyn  signed  -slightly  with  his 
hand.  The  sudden  clash  of  anns  sounded  from  the 
passage  without,  and  a  drum  rolling  the  charge  filled 
the  council-room  with  its  stunning  din.  At  this, 
Pontiac  stood  like  one  confounded.  Some  writers 
will  have  it,  that  Gladwyn,  rising  from  his  seat,  drew 
the  chief's  blanket  aside,  exposed  the  hidden  gun, 
and  sternly  rebuked  him  for  his  treachery.  But 
the  commandant  wished  only  to  prevent  the  consum- 
mation of  the  plot,  without  bringing  on  an  open  rup- 
ture. His  own  letters  aifirm  that  he  and  his  officers 
remained  seated  as  before.  Pontiac,  seeing  his  un- 
ruffled brow  and  his  calm  eye  fixed  steadfastly  upon 
him,  knew  not  what  to  think,  and  soon  sat  down  in 
amazement  and  perplexity.  Another  pause  ensued, 
and  Gladwyn  commenced  a  brief  reply.  He  assured 
the  chiefs  that  friendship  and  protection  should  be 
extended  towards  them  as  long  as  they  continued  to 
deserve  it,  but  threatened  ample  vengeance  for  the  first 
act  of  aggression.  The  council  then  broke  up;  but 
before  leaving  tlie  room,  Pontiac  told  the  officers  that 
he  Avould  return  in  a  few  days,  with  hi;^  squaws  and 
tliildreii,  for  he  wished  that   tlicy  should  all   shake 


piece 


Chap.  XL]        THE  CHIEFS  ALLOWED  TO  ESCAPE. 


201 


hands  with  their  fathers  the  English.  To  this  new 
piece  of  treachery  Gladwyn  deigned  no  reply.  The 
gates  of  the  fort,  which  had  been  closed  during  the 
conference,  were  again  flung  open,  and  the  baffled 
savages  were  suffered  to  depart,  rejoiced,  no  doubt,  to 
breathe  once  more  the  free  air  of  the  open  fields.* 

Gladwyn  has  been  censured,  and  perhaps  with  jus- 
tice, for  not  detaining  the  chiefs  as  hostages  for  the 
good  conduct  of  their  followers.  An  entrapped  wolf 
meets  no  quarter  from  the  huntsman ;  and  a  savage, 
caught  in  his  treachery,  has  no  claim  to  forbearance. 
Perhaps  the  commandant  feared  lest,  should  he  ar- 
rest the  chiefs  when  gathered  at  a  public  council, 
and  guiltless  as  yet  of  open  violence,  the  act  might 
be  interpreted  as  cowardly  and  dishonorable.  He 
was  ignorant,  moreover,  of  the  true  nature  of  the 
plot.  In  his  view,  the  whole  aifair  was  one  of  those 
impulsive  outbreaks  so  common  among  Indians,  and 
he  trusted  that,  could  an  immediate  ruptm*e  be 
averted,  the  threatening  clouds  would  soon  blow  over. 

Here,   and   elsewhere,   the    conduct   of  Pontiac    is 


1  Carver,  Travels,  159,  (London, 
1778.)  M'Kenney,  Tour  to  the 
Lakes,  130.  Cass,  Discourse,  32. 
Penn.  Gaz.  Nos.  1807,  1808.  Pon- 
tiac MS.  M'Doiijral,  MSS.  Gouin's 
Account,  MS.  Meloche's  Account, 
MS.    St.  Aubin's  Account,  MS. 

Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  —  Ma- 
jor Gladwyn  to  Sir  J.  Amherst. 

"  Detroit,  May  14th  1763. 
"  Sir : 

"  On  the  First  Instant,  Pontiac, 
the  Chief  of  the  Ottawa  Nation, 
came  here  with  about  Fitly  of  his 
Men,  (forty,  Pontiac  MS.,)  and  told 
1110  that  in  a  few  days,  when  the  rest 
of  his  Nation  came  in,  lie  Intended 
to  Pay  mo  a  Formal  Visit.  The  7th 
he  came,  but  I  was  luckily  Informed, 


the  Night  before,  that  he  was  coming 
with  an  Intention  to  Surprize  Us ; 
Upon  wliich  I  took  such  Precautions 
that  when  tliey  Entered  the  Fort, 
(tho*  they  were,  by  tlie  best  Accounts, 
about  Three  Hundred,  and  Anncd 
with  Knives,  Tomyhawks,  and  a 
great  many  with  Guns  cut  short, 
and  hid  under  their  Blankets,)  they 
were  so  much  surprized  to  see  our 
Disposition,  that  they  would  scarcely 
sit  down  to  Council:  However  in 
about  Half  an  liour,  after  they  saw 
their  Designs  were  Discovered,  they 
Sat  Down,  and  Pontiac  made  a 
speech  which  I  Answered  calmly, 
without  Intimating  my  suspicion  of 
their  Intentions,  and  after  receiving 
some  Trifling  Presents,  they  went 
away  to  their  Camp." 


I 


'!    '^ 


202 


TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XI. 


marked  with  the  blackest  treachery;  and  one  cannot 
but  lament  that  a  nature  so  brave,  so  commanding, 
so  magnanimous,  should  be  stained  with  the  odious 
\ice  of  cowards  and  traitors.  He  could  govern,  with 
almost  despotic  sway,  a  race  unruly  as  the  winds. 
In  generous  thought  and  deed,  he  rivalled  the  heroes 
of  ancient  story,  and  craft  and  cunning  might  well 
seem  alien  to  a  mind  like  his.  Yet  Pontiac  was  a 
thorough  savage,  and  in  him  stand  forth,  in  strongest 
light  and  shadow,  the  native  faults  and  virtues  of 
the  Indian  race.  All  children,  says  Sir  Walter 
Scott,  are  naturally  liars;  and  truth  and  honor  are 
developments  of  later  education.  Barbarism  is  to 
civilization  what  childhood  is  to  maturity,  and  all 
savages,  whatever  may  be  their  country,  their  color, 
or  their  lineage,  are  prone  to  treachery  and  deceit. 
The  barbarous  ancestors  of  our  own  frank  and  manly 
race  are  no  less  obnoxious  to  the  charge  than  those 
of  the  cat-like  Bengalee;  for  in  this  childhood  of 
society,  brave  men  and  cowards  are  treacherous  alike. 

The  Indian  differs  widely  from  the  European  in 
his  notion  of  military  virtue.  In  his  view,  artifice 
is  wisdom,  and  he  honors  the  skill  that  can  circum- 
vent, no  less  than  the  valor  that  can  subdue,  an 
adversary.  The  object  of  war,  he  argues,  is  to  de- 
stroy the  enemy.  To  accomplish  this  end,  all  means 
are  honorable ;  and  it  is  folly,  not  bravery,  to  incur 
a  needless  risk.  Had  Pontiac  ordered  his  followers 
to  storm  the  palisades  of  Detroit,  not  one  of  them 
would  have  obeyed  him.  They  might,  indeed,  after 
their  strange  superstition,  have  reverenced  him  as  a 
madman;  but,  from  that  hour,  his  fame  as  a  war- 
chief  would  have  sunk  forever. 

Balked  in  liis  treachery,  the  great   chief  withdrew 


CUAP.  XI.] 


FALSE  ALARM. 


203 


to  his  village,  enraged  and  mortified,  yet  still  resolved 
to  persevere.  That  Gladwyn  had  suffered  him  to 
escape,  was  to  his  mind  an  ample  proof  either  of  cow- 
ardice or  ignorance.  The  latter  supposition  seemed 
the  more  probable,  and  he  resolved  to  visit  the  Eng- 
lish once  more,  and  convince  them,  if  possible,  that 
their  suspicions  against  him  were  unfounded.  Early 
on  the  following  morning,  he  repaired  to  the  fort  with 
three  of  his  chiefs,  bearing  in  his  hand  the  sacred 
calumet,  or  pipe  of  peace,  the  bowl  carved  in  stone, 
and  the  stem  adorned  with  feathers.  Offering  it  to 
the  commandant,  he  addressed  him  and  his  officers  to 
the  following  effect:  "My  fathers,  evil  birds  have 
sung  lies  in  your  ear.  We  that  stand  before  you 
are  friends  of  the  English.  We  love  them  as  our 
brothers,  and,  to  prove  our  love,  we  have  come  this 
day  to  smoke  the  pipe  of  peace."  At  his  departure, 
he  gave  the  pipe  to  Major  Campbell,  second  in  com- 
mand, as  a  farther  pledge  of  his  sincerity. 

That  afternoon,  the  better  to  cover  his  designs, 
Pontiac  called  the  young  men  of  all  the  tribes  to  a 
game  of  ball,  which  took  place,  with  great  noise  and 
shouting,  on  the  neighboring  fields.  At  nightfall, 
the  garrison  were  startled  by  a  burst  of  loud,  shrill 
yells.  The  drums  beat  to  arms,  and  the  troops  were 
ordered  to  theu'  posts;  but  the  alarm  was  caused 
only  by  the  victors  in  the  ball  play,  who  were  an- 
nouncing their  success  by  these  discordant  outcries. 
Meanwhile,  Pontiac  was  in  the  Pottawattamie  village, 
consulting  with  the  chiefs  of  that  tribe,  and  with  the 
Wyandots,  by  what  means  they  might  compass  the 
ruin  of  the  English.^ 


•I 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


204 


TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC 


[Chap.  XI. 


If 


Early  on  the  following  morning,  Monday,  the  ninth 
of  May,  the  French  inhabitants  went  in  procession 
to  the  principal  church  of  the  settlement,  which  stood 
near  the  river  bank,  about  half  a  mile  above  the 
fort.  Having  heard  mass,  they  all  returned  before 
eleven  o'clock,  without  discovering  any  signs  that 
the  Indians  meditated  an  immediate  act  of  hostility. 
Scarcely,  however,  had  they  done  so,  when  the  com- 
mon behind  the  fort  was  once  more  thronged  with 
Indians  of  all  the  four  tribes ;  and  Pontiac,  advancing 
from  among  the  multituc'e,  approached  the  gate.  It 
was  closed  and  barred  against  him.  Pontiac  shouted 
to  the  sentinels,  and  demanded  why  he  was  refused 
admittance.  Gladwyn  himself  replied,  that  the  great 
chief  might  enter,  if  he  chose,  but  that  the  crowd  he 
had  brought  with  him  must  remain  outside.  Pontiac 
rejoined,  that  he  wished  all  his  warriors  to  enjoy  the 
fragrance  of  the  friendly  calumet.  Gladwyn's  answer 
was  more  concise  than  courteous,  and  imported  that 
he  would  have  none  of  his  rabble  in  the  fort.  Thus 
repulsed,  Pontiac  threw  off  the  mask  which  he  had 
worn  so  long.  With  a  grin  of  hate  and  rage,  he 
turned  abruptly  from  the  gate,  and  strode  towards  his 
followers,  who,  in  great  multitudes,  lay  flat  upon  the 
ground,  just  beyond  reach  of  gunshot.  At  his  ap 
proach,  they  all  leaped  up  and  ran  off,  "  yelping,"  in 
the  words  of  an  eye-witness,  "like  so  many  devils."' 

Looking  out  from  the  loopholes,  the  garrison  could 
sec  them  running  in  a  body  towards  the  house  of 
an  old  English  woman,  who  lived,  with  her  family, 
on  a  distant  part  of  the  common.  They  beat  down 
the  doors,  and   rushed   tumultuously  in.     A  moment 


*  MS.  Letter  —  Gladwyn  to  Amherst,  May  14.    Pontiac  MS.,  etc. 


Chap.  XI.]         PONTIAC  THROWS  OFF  THE  MASK. 


205 


more,  and  the  mournful  scalp  yell  told  the  fate  of 
the  wretched  inmates.  Another  large  body  ran,  with 
loud  yells,  to  the  river  bank,  and,  leaping  into  their 
canoes,  paddled  with  all  speed  to  the  Isle  au  Cochon. 
Here  dwelt  an  Englishman,  named  Fisher,  formerly  a 
sergeant  of  the  regulars. 

They  soon  dragged  him  from  the  hiding-place 
where  he  had  sought  refuge,  murdered  him  on  the 
snot,  took  his  scalp,  and  made  great  rejoicings  over 
this  miserable  trophy  of  brutal  malice.  On  the  fol- 
lowing day,  several  Canadians  crossed  over  to  the 
island  to  inter  the  body,  which  they  accomplished,  as ' 
they  thought,  very  effectually.  Tradition,  however,  re- 
lates, as  undoubted  truth,  that  when,  a  few  days  after, 
some  of  the  party  returned  to  the  spot,  they  beheld 
the  pale  hands  of  the  dead  man  thrust  above  the 
ground,  in  an  attitude  of  eager  entreaty.  Having 
once  more  covered  the  refractory  members  with  earth, 
they  departed,  in  great  wonder  and  awe;  but  what 
was  their  amazement,  when,  on  returning  a  second 
time,  they  saw  the  hands  protruding  as  before.  At 
this,  they  repaired  in  horror  to  the  priest,  who 
hastened  to  the  spot,  sprinkled  the  grave  with  holy 
water,  and  performed  over  it  the  neglected  rites  of 
burial.  Thenceforth,  says  the  tradition,  the  corpse 
of  the  murdered  soldier  slept  in  peace.^ 

Pontiac  had  borne  no  part  in  the  wolfish  deeds  of 
his  followers.  When  he  saw  his  plan  defeated,  he 
turned  towards  the  shore,  and  no  man  durst  approach 
him,  for  he  was  terrible  in  his  rage.  Pushing  a 
canoe  from  the  bank,  he  urged  it,  with  vigorous 
strokes,    against    the    current,    towards    the    Ottawa 


'  St  Aubin'a  Account,  MS. 


B 


2** 


m 


% 


206 


TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC 


[Chap.  XI. 


vUlage,  on  the  farther  side.  As  he  drew  near,  he 
shouted  to  the  mmates.  None  remained  in  the  lodges 
but  women,  children,  and  old  men,  who  all  came  flock- 
ing out  at  the  sound  of  his  imperious  voice.  Pointing 
across  the  water,  he  ordered  that  all  should  prepare  to 
move  the  camp  to  the  western  shore,  that  the  river 
might  no  longer  interpose  a  barrier  between  his  fol- 
lowers and  the  English.  The  squaws  labored  with 
eager  alacrity  to  obey  him.  Provision,  utensils, 
weapons,  and  even  the  bark  covering  to  the  lodges, 
were  carried  to  the  shore;  and  before  evening  all 
'  was  ready  for  embarkation.  Meantime,  the  warriors 
had  come  dropping  in  from  their  bloody  work,  until, 
at.  nightfall,  nearly  all  had  returned.  Then  Pontiac, 
hideous  in  his  war-paint,  leaped  into  the  central  area 
of  the  village.  Brandishing  his  tomahawk,  and 
stamping  on  the  ground,  he  recounted  his  former  ex- 
ploits, and  denounced  vengeance  on  the  English.  The 
Indians  flocked  about  him.  Warrior  after  warrior 
caught  the  fierce  contagion,  and  soon  the  ring  was 
filled  with  dancers,  circling  round  and  round  with 
frantic  gesture,  and  startling  the  distant  garrison  with 
unearthly  yells.^ 

The  war-dance  over,  the  work  of  embarkation  was 
commenced,  and  long  before  morning  the  transfer 
was  complete.  The  whole  Ottawa  population  crossed 
the  river,  and  pitched  their  wigwams  on  the  west- 
em  side,  just  above  the  mouth  of  the  little  stream 
then  known  as  Parent's  Creek,  but  since  named 
Bloody  Run,  from  the  scenes  of  teiTor  which  it  wit- 
nessed." 

During  the  evening,  fresh  tidings  of  disaster  reached 


1  Parent's  Account,  MS.    Meloche's  Account,  MS. 
8  Gouin's  Account,  MS. 


■"'■T 


Chap.  XI.] 


GENERAL  ATTACK. 


207 


the  fort.  A  Canadian,  named  Desnoyers,  came  down 
the  river  in  a  birch  canoe,  and,  landing  at  the  water 
gate,  brought  news  that  two  EngUsh  officers.  Sir  Rob- 
ert Davers  and  Captain  Robertson,  had  been  waylaid 
and  murdered  by  the  Indians,  above  Lake  St.  Clair.^ 
The  Canadian  declared,  moreover,  that  Pontiac  had 
just  been  joined  by  a  formidable  band  of  Ojibwas, 
from  the  Bay  of  Saginaw.**  These  were  a  peculiarly 
ferocioiiS  horde,  hnd  their  wretched  descendants  still 
retain  the  character. 

Every  Englisiuaan  in  the  fort,  whether  trader  or 
soldier,  was  now  ordered  under  arms.  No  man  lay 
down  to  sleep,  and  Gladwyn  himself  walked  the 
ramparts  throughout  the  night. 

All  was  quiet  till  the  approach  of  dawn.  But  as 
the  first  dim  redness  tinged  the  east,  and  fields  and 
woods  grew  visible  in  the  morning  twilight,  suddenly 
the  war-whoop  rose  on  every  side  at  once.  As  wolves 
assail  the  wounded  bison,  howling  their  gathering 
cries  across  the  wintry  prairie,  so  the  fierce  Indians, 
pealing  their  terrific  yells,  came  boimding  naked  to 
the  assault.  The  men  hastened  to  their  posts.  And 
truly  it  was  time,  for  not  the  Ottawas  alone,  but  the 
whole  barbarian  swarm,  Wyandots,  Pottawattamies, 
and  Ojibwas,  were  upon  them,  and  bullets  rapped 
hard  and  fast  against   the   palisades.      The    soldiers 


1  Penn.  Gaz.  Nos.  1807, 1808. 

Extract  from  an  anonymous  letter 
—  Detroit,  July  9,  1763. 

"  You  have  long  ago  heard  of  our 
pleaaant  Situation,  but  the  Storm  is 
blown  over.  Was  it  not  very  agree- 
able to  hear  every  Day,  of  their 
cutting,  carving,  boiling  and  eating 
our  Companions  ?  To  see  every  Day 
dead  Bodies  floating  down  the  River, 
mangled  and  disfigured?  But  Brit- 
0110,  you  know,  never  shrink;   we 


always  appeared  gay,  to  spite  the 
Rascals.  They  boiled  and  eat  Sir 
Robert  Davers ;  and  we  are  informed 
by  Mr.  Pauly,  who  escaped  the  other 
Day  from  one  of  the  Stations  sur- 
prised at  the  breaking  out  of  the  War, 
and  commanded  by  himself,  that  he 
had  seen  an  Indian  have  the  Skin  of 
Captain  Robertson's  Arm  for  a  To- 
bacco-Pouch ! " 
a  Pontiac  MS. 


I 


li 


***** 


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C;'- 


1 


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1- 


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208 


TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XL 


I  I- 

1* 


looked  from  the  loopholes,  thinking  to  see  their  af3- 
sailants  gathering  for  a  rush  against  the  feeble  barrier. 
But,  though  their  clamors  filled  the  air,  and  their 
guns  blazed  thick  and  hot,  yet  very  few  were  visible. 
Some  were  ensconced  behind  bams  and  fences,  some 
skulked  among  bushes,  and  some  lay  flat  in  hollows 
of  the  ground ;  while  those  who  could  find  no  shel- 
ter were  leaping  about  with  the  agility  of  monkeys, 
to  dodge  the  shot  of  the  fort.  Each  had  filled  his 
mouth  with  bullets,  for  the  convenience  of  loading, 
and  each  was  charging  and  firing  without  suspending 
these  agile  gymnastics  for  a  moment.  There  was  one 
low  hill,  at  no  great  distance  from  the  fort,  behind 
which  countless  black  heads  of  Indians  alternately 
appeared  and  vanished,  while,  all  along  the  ridge, 
their  guns  emitted  incessant  white  puffs  of  smoke. 
Every  loophole  was  a  target  for  their  bullets ;  but 
the  fire  was  returned  with  steadiness,  and  not  with- 
out effect.  The  Canadian  engagh  of  the  fur-traders 
retorted  the  Indian  war-whoops  with  outcries  not  less 
discordant,  while  the  British  and  provincials  paid  back 
the  clamor  of  the  enemy  with  musket  and  rifle  balls. 
Within  half  gunshot  of  the  palisade  was  a  cluster 
of  outbuildings,  behind  which  a  host  of  Indians  found 
shelter.  A  cannon  was  brought  to  bear  upon  them, 
loaded  with  red-hot  spikes.  They  were  soon  wrapped 
in  flames,  upon  which  the  disconcerted  savages  broke 
away  in  a  body,  and  ran  off  yelping,  followed  by  a 
shout  of  laughter  from  the  soldiers.^ 

For  six  hours,  the  attack  was  unabated ;  but  as  the 
day  advanced,  the  assailants  grew  weary  of  their 
futile  efforts.     Their  fire  slackened,  their  clamors  died 


1  Pontiac  MS.    Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1808. 
herst.  May  14,  etc. 


MS.  Letter — Gladwyn  to  Am- 


Chap.  XL 


Chap.  XI.] 


A  TRUCE. 


209 


away,  and  the  garrison  was  left  once  more  in  peace, 
though  from  time  to  time  a  solitary  shot,  or  lonely 
whoop,  stUl  showed  thr  presence  of  some  lingering 
savage,  loath  to  be  balked  of  his  revenge.  Among 
the  garrison,  only  five  men  had  been  wounded,  while 
the  cautious  enemy  had  suffered  but  trifling  loss. 

Gladwyn  was  still  convinced  that  the  whole  affair 
was  but  a  sudden  ebullition,  which  would  soon  sub- 
side ;  and  being,  moreover,  in  great  want  of  provision, 
he  resolved  to  open  negotiations  with  the  Indians, 
under  cover  of  which  he  might  obtain  the  necessary 
supplies.  The  interpreter,  La  Butte,  who,  like  most 
of  his  countrymen,  might  be  said  to  hold  a  neutral 
position  between  the  English  and  the  Indians,  was 
despatched  to  the  camp  of  Pontiac  to  demand  the 
reasons  of  his  conduct,  and  declare  that  the  com- 
mandant was  ready  to  redress  any  real  grievance  of 
which  he  might  complain.  Two  old  Canadians  of 
Detroit,  Chapeton  and  Godefroy,  earnest  to  forward 
the  negotiation,  offered  to  accompany  him.  The 
gates  were  opened  for  their  departure,  and  many 
other  inhabitants  of  the  place  took  this  opportunity 
of  leaving  it,  alleging  as  their  motive,  that  they  did 
not  wish  to  see  the  approaching  slaughter  of  the 
English.  ^  •!  :. 

Reaching  the  Indian  camp,  the  three  ambassadors 
were  received  by  Pontiac  with  great  apparent  kind- 
ness. La  Butte  delivered  his  message,  and  the  two 
Canadians  labored  to  dissuade  the  chief,  for  his  own 
good  and  for  theirs,  from  pursuing  his  hostile  pur- 
poses. Pontiac  stood  listening,  armed  with  the  true 
impenetrability  of  an  Indian.  At  every  proposal,  he 
uttered  an  ejaculation  of  assent,  partly  from  a  strange 
notion  of  courtesy  peculiar  to  his  race,  and  partly 
27  R* 


ft- 


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f1 


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210 


TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC 


[CUAP.  XI. 


?*i 


from   the   deep  dissimulation  which   seems   native  to 
their  blood.     Yet  with  all  this  seeming  acquiescence, 
the   heart    of  the   savage  was    unmoved   as    a  rock. 
The   Canadians   were    completely   deceived.     Leaving 
Chapeton  and   Godefroy   to  continue  the  conference 
and   push  the  fancied  advantage,  La  Butte  hastened 
back  to  the  fort.     He  reported   the  happy  issue  of 
his  mission,  and   added   that  peace  might  readily  be 
had    by    making    the    Indians    a    few    presents,  for 
which    they   are    always   rapaciously    eager.     When, 
however,  he  returned  to  the  Indian  camp,  he  found, 
to   his   chagrin,  that   his   companions   had   made   no 
progress  in  the  negotiation.     Though  still   professing 
a  strong  desire  for  peace,  Pontiac  had  evaded  every 
definite  proposal.     At  La  Butte's  appearance,  all  the 
chiefs  withdrew  to  consult  among  themselves.     They 
returned   after  a  short  debate,  and  Pontiac  declared 
that,  out  of  their  earnest  desire  for  firm  and  lasting 
peace,  they  ^vished  to  hold  council  with  their  English 
fathers  themselves.     With   this   view,   they  were  ex- 
pressly desirous  that  Major  Campbell,  second  in  com- 
mand, should  visit  their  camp.     This  veteran  officer, 
from   his    just,    upright,    and   manly    character,   had 
gained  the  confidence  of  the  Indians.     To  the  Cana- 
dians the  proposal  seemed  a  natural  one,  and  return' 
ing  to  the  fort,  they  laid  it  before  the  commandant. 
Gladw}Ti    suspected   treachery,  but    Major   Campbell 
urgently  asked  permission  to  comply  with  the  request 
of  Pontiac.     He   felt,   he   said,  no   fear  of  the    In- 
dians, with    whom    he    had    always  maintained   the 
most  friendly  terms.     Gladwyn,  with  some  hesitation, 
acceded,  and  Campbell   left  the  fort,  accompanied  by 
a  junior  officer,  Lieutenant  M'Dougal,  and   attended 
by  La  Butte  and  several  other  Canadians. 


vUAP.  XI. 


Chap.  XL] 


EMBASSY  OF  MAJOR  CAMPBELL. 


211 


In  the  mean  time,  M.  Gouin,  anxious  to  learu 
what  was  passing,  had  entered  the  Indian  camp,  and, 
moving  from  lodge  to  lodge,  soon  saw  and  heard 
enough  to  convince  him  that  the  two  British  officers 
were  advancing  into  the  lion's  jaws.*  He  hastened 
to  despatch  two  messengers  to  warn  them  of  *  the 
peril.  The  party  had  scarcely  left  the  gate  when 
they  were  met  by  these  men,  breathless  with  run- 
ning; but  the  warning  came  too  late.  Once  em- 
barked on  the  embassy,  the  officers  would  not  be 
diverted  from  it ;  and  passing  up  the  river  road,  they 
approached  the  little  wooden  bridge  that  led  over 
Parent's  Creek.  Crossing  this  bridge,  and  ascending 
a  rising  ground  beyond,  they  saw  before  them  the 
wide-spread  camp  of  the  Ottawas.  A  dark  multi- 
tude gathered  along  its  outskirts,  and  no  sooner  did 
they  recognize  the  red  uniform  of  the  officers,  than 
they  all  raised  at  once  a  horrible  outcry  of  whoops 
and  bowlings.  Indeed,  they  seemed  disposed  to  give 
the  ambassadors  the  reception  usually  accorded  to 
captives  taken  in  war ;  for  the  women  seized  sticks, 
stones,  and  clubs,  and  ran  towards  Campbell  and  his 
companion,  as  if  to  make  them  pass  the  cruel  ordeal 
01  running  the  gantlet.^     Pontiac  came  forward,  and 


1  Gouin's  Account,  MS. 

9  When  a  war  party  returned  with 
prisoners,  the  whole  population  of 
the  village  turned  out  to  receive  them, 
armed  with  sticks,  clubs,  or  even 
deadlier  weapons.  The  captive  was 
ordered  to  run  to  a  given  point, 
usually  some  conspicuous  lodge,  or 
a  post  driven  into  the  ground,  while 
his  tormentors,  ranging  themselves 
in  two  rows,  inflicted  on  him  a  mer- 
ciless flagellation,  which  only  ceased 
when  lie  had  reached  the  goal. — 
Among  the  Iroquois,  prisoners  were 
led  through  the  whole  confederacy, 
undergoing  this  martyrdom  at  every 


village,  and  seldom  escaping  without 
the  loss  of  a  hand,  a  finger,  or  an 
eye.  Sometimes  the  sufferer  was 
made  to  dance  and  sing,  for  the  bet- 
ter entertainment  of  the  crowd. 

The  story  of  General  Stark  is  well 
known.  Being  captured,  in  his  youth, 
by  the  Indians,  and  told  to  run  the 
gantlet,  he  instantly  knocked  down 
the  nearest  warrior,  snatched  a  club 
from  his  hands,  and  wielded  it  with 
such  good  will  that  no  one  dared  ap- 
proach him,  and  he  reached  the  goal 
scot  free,  while  his  more  timorous 
companion  was  nearly  beaten  to 
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TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC. 


[CUXT.  XI. 


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his  voice  allayed  the  tumult.  He  shook  the  officers 
by  the  hand,  and,  turning,  led  the  way  through  the 
camp.  It  was  a  confused  assemblage  of  huts,  chiefly 
of  a  conical  or  half-spherical  shape,  and  constructed 
of  a  slender  framework  covered  with  rush  mats  or 
sheets  of  birch  bark.  Many  of  tlie  graceful  birch 
canoes,  used  by  the  Indians  of  the  upper  lakes,  were 
lying  here  and  there  among  paddles,  fbsh-spears,  and 
blackened  kettles  slung  above  the  embers  of  the 
fires.  The  camp  was  full  of  lean,  wolfish  dogs,  who, 
roused  by  the  clamor  of  their  owners,  kept  up  a 
discordant  having  as  the  strangers  passed.  Pontiac 
paused  before  the  entrance  of  a  large  lodge,  and,  en- 
tering, pointed  to  several  mats  placed  on  the  ground, 
at  the  side  opposite  the  opening.  Here,  obedient  to 
his  signal,  the  two  officers  sat  down.  Instantly  the 
lodge  was  thronged  with  savages.  Some,  and  these 
were  for  the  most  part  chiefs,  or  old  men,  seated 
themselves  on  the  ground  before  the  strangers,  while 
the  remaining  space  was  filled  by  a  dense  crowd, 
crouching  or  standing  erect,  and  peering  over  each 
other's  shoulders.  At  their  first  entrance,  Pontiac 
had  spoken  a  few  words.  A  pause  then  ensued, 
broken  at  length  by  Campbell,  who  from  his  scat 
addressed  the  Indians  iu  a  short  speech.  It  was 
heard  in  perfect  silence,  and  no  reply  was  made. 
For  a  full  hour,  the  imfortunate  officers  saw  before 
them  the  same  concourse  of  dark,  inscrutable  faces, 
bending  an  unwavering  gaze  upon  them.  Some  were 
passing  out,  and  others  coming  in  to  supply  their 
places,  and  indulge  their  curiosity  by  a  sight  of  the 
Englishmen.  At  length,  Major  Campbell,  conscious, 
no  doubt,  of  the  danger  in  which  he  was  placed, 
resolved    fully    to    ascertain   his   true    position,   and, 


ur.  XI. 


CnAP.  XI.] 


CAMPBELL  MADE  PRISONER. 


2V6 


rising  to  his  feet,  declared  his  intention  of  returning 
to  the  fort.  Pontiac  made  a  sign  that  he  should 
resume  his  seat.  "My  father,"  he  said,  "will  sleep 
to-night  in  the  lodges  of  his  red  children."  The 
gray-haired  soldier  and  his  companion  were  betrayed 
uito  the  hands  of  their  enemies. 

Many  of  the  Indians  were  eager  to  kill  the  cap- 
tives on  the  spot,  but  Pontiac  would  not  carry  his 
treachery  so  far.  He  protected  them  from  injury 
and  insult,  and  conducted  them  to  the  house  of  M. 
Meloche,  near  Parent's  Creek,  where  good  quarters 
were  assigned  them,  and  as  much  liberty  allowed  as 
was  consistent  with  safe  custody.^  The  peril  of  their 
situation  was  diminished  by  the  circumstance  that 
two  Indians,  who,  several  days  before,  had  been  de- 
tained at  the  fort  for  some  slight  offence,  still  re- 
mained prisoners  in  the  power  of  the  commandant.'' 


1  Meloche's  Account,  MS.  Penn. 
Gaz.  No.  1808. 

9  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter— Sir 
J.  Amherst  to  Major  Gladwyn. 

"New  York,"      i  Jun  ,  1763. 

"The  Prccauti  u?*  you  took  when 
tlie  Perfidious  Villains  came  to  Pay 
you  a  Visit,  witf  Indeed  very  wisely 
Concerted  :  And  1  Approve  Entirely 
of  the  Sttpts  ycm  have  since  taken 
for  the  Defence  of  the  Place,  which, 
I  hope,  will  have  Enabled  You  to 
keep  tite  Savages  at  Bay  untill  the 
Reinforcement,  which  Major  Wil- 
kins  Writes  mo  he  had  sent  you,  Ar- 
rivt'H  with  you. 

"  I  most  sincerely  Grieve  for  the 
Unfortunate  Fate  of  Sir  Robert  Da- 
vers,  Lieut  Robertson,  and  the  Rest 
of  the  Poor  People,  who  have  fallen 
into  the  Hands  of  the  Mercfless  Vil- 
lains. I  Trust  you  did  not  Know  of 
the  Murder  oi  those  Gentlemen, 
when  Pontiac  came  with  a  Pipe  of 


Peace,  for  if  you  had,  you  certainly 
would  have  put  him,  and  Every  In- 
dian in  your  Power,  to  Death.  Such 
Retaliation  is  the  only  Way  of 
Treating  such  Miscreants. 

"I  cannot  but  Approve  it'  your 
having  Permitted  Captain  Campbell 
and  Lieut.  MacDougal  to  go  to  tlie 
Indians,  as  you  had  no  other  Method 
to  Procure  Provisions,  by  which 
means  you  may  have  been  Enabled 
to  Preserve  the  Garrison;  for  no 
Other  Inducement  should  have  pre- 
vailed on  you  to  Allow  those  Gentle- 
men to  Entrust  themselves  with  the 
Savages.  I  am  Nevertheless  not 
without  my  Fears  for  them,  and  were 
it  not  that  vcn  have  two  Indians  in 
your  Handis,  in  Lieu  of  those  Gentle- 
men, I  should  give  them  over  for 
Lost. 

"  I  shall  \dd  no  more  at  present ; 
Capt  Dalzell  will  Inform  you  of  the 
steps  taken  for  Reinforcing  you :  and 
you  may  be  assured — uie  utmost 


I.,;:? 


ill 


214 


TREACHERY  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XI. 


Late  in  the  evening,  La  Butte,  the  interpreter, 
returned  to  the  fort.  His  face  wore  a  sad  and 
downcast  look,  which  sufficiently  expressed  the  mel- 
ancholy tidings  that  he  brought.  On  hearing  his 
account,  some  of  the  officers  suspected,  though  prob- 
ably without  ground,  that  he  was  privy  to  the  de- 
tention of  the  two  ambassadors;  and  La  Butte, 
feeling  himself  an  object  of  distrust,  lingered  about 
the  streets,  sullen  and  silent,  like  the  Indians  among 
whom  his  rough  life  had  been  spent. 


Expedition  will  be  used  for  Collect-  the  Treacherous  and  Bloody  Villains 
ing  such  a  Force  as  may  be  Sufficient  who  have  so  Perfidiously  Attacked 
for  bringing  Ample  Vengeance  on    their  Benefactors." 


■-"»■'■  ft.- 


^:r  ■..;,-'♦./.;;.%■ 


W"' 


.i^tr  C^- 


,ii,if*i"  •     f  -■'■'.■. 


'#ft!l-:'i.  iU 


i  'i       iM'^-'z/rf  f'^  '■■■'.  \i       --  -    ',        '.'■'l-:"."'.r.J: -. 


:^WU.^, 


CHAPTER   XII.      fl:       '^ 


PONTIAC   AT   THE   SIEGE   OP   DETROIT. 

On  the  morning  after  the  detention  of  the  officers, 
Pontiac  crossed  over,  with  several  of  his  chiefs,  to  the 
Wyandot  village.  A  part  of  this  tribe,  influenced  by 
Father  Pothier,  their  Jesuit  priest,  had  refused  to  take 
up  arms  against  the  English ;  but,  being  now  threat- 
ened with  destruction  if  they  should  longer  remain 
neutral,  they  were  forced  to  join  the  rest.  They 
stipulated,  however,  that  they  should  be  allowed  time 
to  hear  mass,  before  dancing  the  war-dance.^  To  this 
condition  Pontiac  readily  agreed,  "  although,"  observes 
the  chronicler  in  the  fulness  of  his  horror  and  detes- 
tation, "  he  himself  had  no  manner  of  worship,  and 
cared  not  for  festivals  or  Sundays."  These  nominal 
Christians  of  Father  Pothier's  flock,  together  with 
the  other  Wyandots,  soon  distinguished  themselves  in 
the  war;  fighting  better,  it  was  said,  then  all  the 
other  Indians  —  an  instance  of  the  marked  superi- 
ority of  the  Iroquois  07er  the  Algonquin  stock. 

Having  secured  these  new  allies,  Pontiac  prepared 
to  resume  his  operations  with  fresh  vigor ;  and  to  this 
intent,  he  made  an  improved  disposition  of  his  forces. 
Some  of  the  Pottawattamies  were  ordered  to  lie  in 
wait    along   the   river  bank,  below  the  fort;   while 

1  Pontiac  MS. 


!   I   ,' 


iiiiiiiit'--' 


If: 


IS- 


V? 


PONTIAC  AT  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XII. 


others  concealed  themselves  in  the  woods,  in  order  to 
intercept  any  Englishman  who  might  approach  by 
land  or  water.  Another  band  of  the  same  tribe  were 
to  conceal  themselves  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  fort, 
when  no  general  attack  was  going  forward,  in  order 
to  shoot  down  any  soldier  or  trader  who  might  chance 
to  expose  his  person.  On  the  twelfth  of  May,  when 
these  arrangements  were  complete,  the  Indians  once 
more  surrounded  the  fort,  firing  upon  it  from  morn- 
ing till  night. 

On  the  evening  of  that  day,  the  officers  met  to 
consider  what  course  of  conduct  the  emergency  re- 
quired; and,  as  one  of  them  writes,  the  commandant 
was  almost  alone  in  the  opinion  that  they  ought  still 
to  defend  the  place.^  It  seemed  to  the  rest  that  the 
only  course  remaining  was  to  embark  and  sail  for 
Niagara.  Their  condition  appeared  desperate,  for,  on 
the  shortest  allowance,  they  had  scarcely  provision 
enough  to  sustain  the  garrison  three  weeks,  within 
which  time  there  was  little  hope  of  succor.  The 
houses  being,  moreover,  of  wood,  and  chiefly  thatched 
with  straw,  might  be  set  on  fire  with  burning  mis- 
siles. But  the  chief  apprehensions  of  the  officers 
arose  from  their  dread  that  the  enemy  would  make  a 
general  onset,  and  cut  or  bum  their  way  through  the 
pickets — a  mode  of  attack  to  which  resistance  would 
be  unavailing.  Their  anxiety  on  this  score  was  re- 
lieved by  a  Canadian  in  the  fort,  who  had  spent  half 
his  life  among  Indians,  and  who  now  assured  the 
commandant  that  every  maxim  of  their  warfare  was 
opposed  to  such  a  measure.  Indeed,  an  Indian's  idea 
of  military  honor  widely  differs,  as   before  observed, 


*    X  CIUI.  v;i<><i.  x^u.  xuvC. 


*,. 


Chap.  XH.] 


PERIL  OF  THE  GARRISON. 


217 


from  that  of  a  white  man;  for  he  holds  it  to  con- 
sist no  less  in  a  wary  regard  to  his  own  life  than 
in  the  courage  and-  impetuosity  with  which  he  assails 
his  enemy.  His  constant  aim  is  to  gain  advantages 
without  incurring  loss.  He  sets  an  inestimable  value 
on  the  lives  of  his  own  prrty,  and  deems  a  victory 
dearly  purchased  by  the  death  of  a  single  warrior.  A 
war-chief  attains  the  summit  of  his  renown  when  he 
can  boast  that  he  has  brought  home  a  score  of  scalps 
without  the  loss  of  a  man;  and  his  reputation  is  wo- 
fully  abridged  if  the  mournful  wailings  of  the  women 
mingle  with  the  exulting  yells  of  the  warriors.  Yet, 
with  all  his  subtlety  and  caution,  the  Indian  is  not 
a  coward,  and,  in  his  own  way  of  fighting,  often 
exliibits  no  ordinary  courage.  Stealmg  alone  into  the 
"  .  art  of  an  enemy's  country,  he  prowls  around  the 
:  itUe  village,  watching  every  movement;  and  when 
night  sets  in,  he  enters  a  lodge,  and  calmly  stirs  the 
decaying  embers,  that,  by  their  light,  he  may  select 
his  sleeping  victims.  With  cool  deliberation,  dealing 
the  mortal  thrust,  he  kills  foe  after  foe,  and  tears 
away  scalp  after  scalp,  until  at  length  an  alarm  is 
given;  then,  with  a  wild  yell,  he  bounds  out  into 
the  darkness,  and  is  gone. 

Time  passed  on,  and  brought  little  change  and  no 
relief  to  the  harassed  and  endangered  garrison.  Day 
after  day  the  Indians  continued  their  attacks,  imtil 
their  war-cries  and  the  rattle  of  their  guns  became 
familiar  sounds. 

For  many  weeks,  no  man  lay  down  to  sleep,  except 
ill  his   clothes,  and  with   his  weapons  by  his   side.* 


1!^ 


I 


!'.<: 


■if    ,  1 


I 


I 


1  MS.  Letter  from  an  officer  at  "  We  have  been  besieged  here  two 

Detroit  —  no  signature  —  July  31.  Months,    by  SLx  Hundred   Indians. 

Extract  from  a  letter  dated  Dc-  We  have  been  uponjhe  Watch  Night 
troit,  July  U. 

28  s 


and  Day,  from  the  Comiaanding  OiS- 


218 


rONTIAC  AT  DETROIT. 


[CUAP.  XII. 


I!     J 


Parties  of  volunteers  sallied,  from  time  to  time,  to 
biu-n  the  outbuildings  which  gave  shelter  to  .lie 
enemy.  They  cut  dc»vn  orchard  trees,  and  levelled 
fences,  ^:ntil  the  ground  about  the  fort  was  clear 
and  ope  ,  and  the  enemy  had  no  cover  left  from 
whence  to  fire.  The  two  vessels  in  the  river,  sweep- 
ing the  northern  and  southern  curtails  of  the  works 
with  their  fire,  deterred  the  Indians  from  approaching 
those  points,  and  gave  material  aid  to  the  garrison. 
Still,  worming  their  way  through  the  grass,  shelter- 
ing themselves  behind  every  rising  ground,  the  per- 
tinacious savages  would  crawl  close  to  the  palisade, 
and  shoot  arrows,  tipped  with  burning  tow,  upon  the 
roofs  of  the  houses ;  but  cisterns  and  tanks  of  water 
were  every  where  provided  against  such  an  emer- 
gency, and  these  attempts  proved  abortive.  The  little 
church,  which  stood  near  the  palisade,  was  particu- 
larly exposed,  and  would  probably  have  been  set  on 
fire,  had  not  the  priest  of  the  settlement  threatened 
Pontiac  with  the  vengeance  of  the  Great  Spirit,  should 
he  be  guilty  of  such  sacrilege.  Pontiac,  who  was 
filled  with  eagerness  to  get  possession  of  the  garrison, 
neglected  no  expedient  that  his  savage  tactics  could 
supply.  He  even  went  farther,  and  begged  the  Frcncli 
inhabitants  to  teach  him  the  European  method  of 
attacking    a   fortified    place   by    regular   approaches; 


"m 


cer  to  the  lowest  soldier,  from  the 
8th  of  May,  and  liave  not  had  our 
Cloaths  off,  nor  slept  all  Night  since 
it  began;  and  shall  continue  so  till 
we  have  a  Rcinforccinent  up.  Wo 
then  hope  soon  to  give  a  good  Ac- 
count of  the  Savages.  Their  Camp 
lies  about  a  Mile  and  a  half  from  the 
Fort;  and  that's  the  nearest  they 
choose  to  come  now.  For  tho  first 
two  or  three  Days  we  %vcre  attacked 
by  three  or  four  Hundred  of  them, 


but  wo  gave  them  so  warm  a  Recep- 
tion tliat  now  they  don't  care  for  com- 
ing to  see  us,  the'  they  now  and  tlicii 
get  behind  a  House  or  Garden,  nnd 
fire  at  us  about  three  or  four  Hundred 
vards'  distance.  The  Day  before 
Yesterday,  we  killed  a  Cliicf  and 
three  otliers,  and  M'ounded  some 
more ;  yesterday  went  up  with  our 
Sloop,  and  battered  their  Cabins  in 
such  a  Manner  thot  they  arc  glad  to 
Keep  laruier  on. 


Chap.  XU.] 


UE  SUMMONS  THE  GARRISON. 


219 


IV t  the  rude  Canadians  knew  as  little  of  the  matter 
as  he;  or  it",  by  chance,  a  few  were  better  informed, 
they  wisely  preferred  to  conceal  their  knowledge. 
Soon  after  the  first  attack,  tlie  Ottawa  chief  had 
sent  in  to  Gladwyn  a  summons  to  surrender,  assur- 
ing him  that  if  the  place  were  at  once  given  up,  he 
might  embark  on  board  the  vessels,  with  all  his  men ; 
but  that,  if  he  persisted  in  his  defence,  he  would 
treat  him  as  Indians  treat  each  other;  that  is,  he 
would  buin  him  alive.  To  this  Gladwyn  made  an- 
swer that  he  cared  nothing  for  his  threats.^  The 
attacks  were  now  renewed  with  increased  activity,  and 
the  assailants  were  soon  after  inspired  with  fresh  ar- 
dor by  the  arrival  of  a  hundred  and  twenty  Ojibwa 
warriors  from  Grand  River.  Every  man  in  the  fort, 
officers,  soldiers,  traders,  and  engages^  now  slept  upon 
the  ramparts;  even  in  stormy  weather,  none  were 
allowed  to  withdraw  to  their  quarters;^  yet  a  spuit 
of  confidence  and  cheerfulness  still  prevailed  among 
the  weary  garrison. 

Meanwhile,  great  efforts  were  made  to  procure  a 
supply  of  provisions.  Every  house  was  examined,  and 
all  that  could  serve  for  food,  even  grease  and  talloAV, 
was  collected  and  placed  in  the  public  storehouse, 
compensation  having  first  been  made  to  the  owners. 
Notwithstanding  these  precautions,  Detroit  must  have 
been  abandoned  or  destroyed,  but  for  the  assistance 
of  a  few  friendly  Canadians,  and  especially  of  M.  Baby, 
a  prominent  habitant  who  lived  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  river,  and  provided  the  garrison  with  cattle, 
hogs,  and  other  supplies.  These,  under  cover  of  night, 
were  carried  from  his  farm  to  the  fort  in  boats,  the 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


2  Pcnn.  Gaz.  No.  1808. 


220 


PONTIAC  AT  DETROIT. 


[Ciixr.  XII. 


Indians  long  r  uT,ining  ignorant  of  what  was  going 
forward.^  #    •    .     v  v-u     . 

They,  on  their  part,  began  to  suffer  from  hunger. 
Thinking  to  have  taken  Detroit  at  a  single  stroke, 
they  had  neglected,  with  their  usual  improvidence,  to 
provide  against  the  exigencies  of  a  siege;  and  now, 
in  small  parties,  they  would  visit  the  Canadian  fami- 
lies along  the  river  shore,  passing  from  house  to  house, 
demanding  provisions,  and  threatening  violence  in 
case  of  refusal.  This  was  th(i  more  annoying,  since 
the  food  thus  obtained  was  wasted  with  character- 
istic recklessness.  Unable  to  endure  it  longer,  the 
Canadians  appointed  a  deputation  of  fifteen  of  the 
eldest  among  them  to  wait  upon  Pontiac,  and  com- 
plain of  his  followers'  conduct.  The  meeting  took 
place  at  a  Canaiian  house,  probably  that  of  INI.  ISIe- 
loche,  where  the  great  chief  had  made  his  head-quar- 
ters, and  where  the  prisoners,  Campbell  and  M'Dougal, 
were  confined.  i       .    , 

A\lien  Pontiac  saw  the  deputation  approaching  along 
the  river  road,  he  Avas  seized  with  an  exceeding  eager- 
ness to  know  the  purpose  of  their  visit;  for  having 
long  desired  to  gain  the  Canadians  as   allies   against 


1  Extract  from  a   IMS.   Letter  — 
Major  Gladwya  to  Sir  J.  Anilierst. 

"  Detroit,  July  8th,  17G3. 
"  Since  the  Coinmcnceinent  of  tliia 
Extraordinary  Affair,  I  have  been  lu- 
forineil,  that  many  of  the  Inhabitants 
of  tliis  I'lacc,  seconded  by  some 
Frencli  Traders  from  Montreal,  have 
made  the  Indians  Believe  that  a 
French  Am)y  &  Fleet  were  in  tiio 
River  St  Lawrence,  and  that  Anoth- 
er Army  would  come  from  the  Illi- 
nois ;  And  that  when  I  Published  tlie 
cessation  of  Anns,  they  said  it  was  a 
mere  Invention  of  Mine,  mirnoselv 


Calculated  to  Keep  the  Indians  Quiet, 
as  We  were  Aftraid  of  them ;  but 
they  were  not  such  Fools  as  to  Be- 
lieve mo ;  Which,  witli  a  thousand 
other  Lies,  calculated  to  Stir  up  Mis- 
chiof,  have  Induced  the  Indiai.s  to 
take  u])  Anns  ;  And  I  dare  say  it  will 
Appear  ere  long^,  that  One  Half  of 
the  Settlement  merit  a  CJibbet,  and 
the  Other  Half  ouj^fht  to  be  Decimat- 
ed ;  NcverthclcKs,  there  is  some  Hon- 
est Men  among  them,  to  whom  I  am 
Infinitely  Obliged  ;  I  mean.  Sir,  Mon- 
sieur Navarre,  the  two  Babys,  &  my 
Interpreters,  St.  Martin  &-  La  Bute." 


going 


Chap.  XH.] 


HIS  SPEECH  TO  THE  FRENCH. 


221 


the  English,  and  made  several  advances  to  that  effect, 
he  hoped  that  their  present  errand  might  relate  to  the 
object  next  his  heart.  So  strong  was  his  curiosity, 
that,  forgetting  the  ordinary  rale  of  Indian  dignity 
and  decorum,  he  asketi  the  business  on  which  they 
had  come  before  they  themselves  had  communicated 
it.  The  Canadians  replied,  that  they  wished  the  chiefs 
to  be  convened,  for  they  were  about  to  speak  upon 
a  matter  of  much  importance.  Pontiac  instantly 
despatched  messengers  to  the  different  camps  and 
villages.  The  chiefs,  soon  arriving  at  his  summons, 
entered  the  apartment,  where  they  sat  down  upon  the 
floor,  having  first  gone  through  the  necessaiy  for- 
mality of  shaking  hands  with  the  Canadian  deputies. 
After  a  suitable  pause,  the  eldest  of  the  French  rose, 
and  heavily  complained  of  the  outrages  which  they 
had  committed.  "  You  pretend,"  he  said,  "  to  be  friends 
of  the  French,  and  yet  you  plunder  us  of  our  hogs 
and  cattle,  you  trample  upon  our  fields  of  young 
corn,  and  when  you  enter  our  houses,  you  enter  with 
tomahawk  raised.  When  your  French  father  comes 
from  Montreal  v/ith  his  great  army,  he  will  hear  of 
what  you  have  done,  and,  instead  of  shaking  hands 
with  you  as  brethren,  he  will  punish  you  as  enemies." 

Pontiac  sat  with  his  eyes  rivettcd  upon  the  ground, 
Ustcning  to  every  word  that  was  spoken.  When  the 
speaker  had  concluded,  he  returned  the  following 
ansAver :  — 

"  Brothers : 

"  We  have  never  wished  to  do  you  harm,  nor  al- 
low any  to  be  done  yon;  bit  among  us  there  are 
many  young  men  who,  though  strictly  watched,  find 
opportunities  of  mischief.  It  is  not  to  revenge  my- 
self alone  that  I  mak(!  war  on  the  English.     It  is  to 

s* 


I 


!5' 


t ,' 


>  ,' 


(  • 


222 


rONTIAC  AT  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XII. 


revenge  you,  my  brothers.  When  the  English  in- 
sulted us,  they  insulted  you  also.  I  know  that  they 
have  taken  away  your  arms,  and  made  you  sign  a 
paper  which  they  have  sent  home  to  their  country. 
Therefore  you  are  left  defenceless ;  and  I  mean  now 
to  revenge  your  cause  and  my  own  together.  I  mean 
to  destroy  the  English,  and  leave  not  one  upon  our 
lands.  You  do  not  know  the  reasons  from  which 
I  act.  I  have  told  you  those  only  which  concern 
yourselves;  but  you  will  learn  all  in  time.  You  will 
cease  then  to  think  me  a  fool.  I  know,  my  brothers, 
that  there  arc  many  among  you  who  take  par'  with 
the  English.  I  am  soiry  for  it,  for  their  own  sakes ; 
for  when  our  father  arrives,  I  shall  point  them  out 
to  him,  and  they  will  see  whether  they  or  I  have 
most  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  the  part  we  have 
acted. 

"  I  do  not  doubt,  my  brothers,  that  this  war  is  very 
troublesome  to  you,  for  our  warriors  are  continually 
passing  and  repassing  through  your  settlement.  I  am 
Sony  for  it.  Do  not  think  that  I  approve  of  the 
damage  that  is  done  by  them ;  and,  as  a  proof  of  this, 
remember  the  war  with  the  Foxes,  and  the  part  which 
I  took  in  it.  It  is  now  seventeen  years  since  the 
Ojibwas  of  Michillimackinac,  combined  with  the  Sacs 
and  Foxes,  came  down  to  destroy  you.  Who  then 
defended  you  ?  AVas  it  not  I  and  my  yoimg  men  ? 
Mickinac,  great  chief  of  all  these  nations,  said  in 
council,  that  he  would  carry  to  his  village  the  licad 
of  your  commandant  —  that  he  would  eat  his  heart 
and  drink  his  blood.  Did  I  not  take  your  part  ?  Did 
I  not  go  to  his  camp,  and  say  to  him,  that  if  lie  wished 
to  kill  the  French,  he  must  first  kill  me  and  my 
warriors]     Did  I  not  assist  you  in  routing  them  and 


Chap.  Xn.] 


mS  SPEECH  TO  THE  FRENCH. 


223 


driving  them  awayV'  And  now  you  think  that  I  would 
turn  my  arms  against  you !  No,  my  brothers ;  I  am 
the  same  French  Pontiac  who  assisted  you  seventeen 
years  ago.  I  am  a  Frenchman,  and  I  wish  to  die  a 
Frenchman;  and  I  now  repeat  to  you  that  you  and 
I  are  one  —  that  it  is  for  both  oar  interests  that  I 
should  be  avenged.  Let  me  alone.  I  do  not  ask  you 
for  aid,  for  it  is  not  in  your  power  to  give  it.  I 
only  ask  pro\isions  for  myself  and  men.  Yet,  if 
you  are  inclined  to  assist  mc,  I  shall  not  refuse  you. 
It  would  please  me,  and  you  yourselves  would  be 
sooner  rid  of  your  troubles ;  for  I  promise  you,  that 
as  soon  as  the  English  are  driven  out,  we  wUl  go 
back  to  our  villages,  and  there  aAvait  the  arri.al  of 
our  French  father.  You  have  heard  what  I  have  to 
say ;  remain  at  peace,  and  I  will  watch  that  no 
harm  shall  be  done  to  you,  either  by  my  men  or  by 
the  other  Indians." 

This  speech  is  reported  by  a  writer  whose  chief 
characteristic  is  the  scrupulous  accuracy  with  which 
he  has  chronicled  minute  details  without   interest  or 


1  The  annals  of  these  remote  and 
gloomy  regions  are  involved  in  such 
obscurity,  that  it  is  hard  to  discover 
the  precise  cliaracter  of  the  events 
to  which  Pontiac  here  refers.  The 
only  allusion  to  them,  which  the  writer 
has  met  with,  is  the  following,  in- 
scribed on  a  tattered  scrap  of  soiled 
paper,  found  among  the  M'Dougal 
manuscripts :  — 

"  Five  miles  below  the  mouth  of 
Wolf  River  is  the  Great  Death 
Ground.  Tliis  took  its  name  from 
the  circumstance,  that  some  years 
before  the  Old  French  War,  a  great 
battle  was  fought  between  the  French 
troops,  assisted  by  the  Menomonies 
and  Ottaways  on  tlio  one  side,  and 
tiie  Sac  and    Fox  Indians  on  the 


other.  The  Sacs  and  Foxes  were 
nearly  all  cut  off;  and  this  proved  the 
cause  of  tlieir  eventual  expulsion 
from  that  country." 

Tiie  M'Dougal  manuscripts,  above 
referred  to,  belonged  to  a  son  of  the 
Lieutenant  M'Dougal  who  was  the 
fellow-prisoner  of  Major  Campbell, 
On  the  death  of  the  younger  M'Dou- 
gal, the  papers,  which  were  very 
voluminous,  and  contained  various 
notes  concerning  the  Indian  war,  and 
the  captivity  of  his  father,  came  into 
the  possession  of  a  family  at  the 
town  of  Palmer,  in  Michigan,  wlio 
pennittcd  such  of  them  as  related  to 
the  subjects  in  question  to  be  copied 
by  tlie  writer. 


224 


rOXTIAC  AT  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XII. 


importance.  lie  neglects,  moreover,  no  opportunity 
of  casting  ignominy  and  contempt  upon  the  name 
of  Pontiac.  His  mind  is  of  so  dull  and  common- 
place an  order  as  to  exclude  the  supposition  that  he 
himself  is  author  of  the  words  which  he  ascribes  to 
the  Ottawa  chief,  and  the  speech  may  probably  be 
taken  as  a  literal  translation  of  the  original. 

As  soon  as  the  council  broke  up,  Pontiac  took 
measures  for  bringing  the  disorders  complained  of  to 
a  close,  wliile,  at  the  same  time,  he  provided  sus- 
tenance for  his  warriors;  and,  in  doing  this,  he  dis- 
played a  policy  and  forecast  scarcely  paralleled  in 
the  history  of  his  race.  He  first  forbade  the  com- 
mission of  farther  outrage.'  He  next  visited  in  turn 
the  families  of  the  Canadians,  and,  inspecting  the 
property  belonging  to  them,  he  assigned  to  each  the 
share  of  provisions  which  it  must  furnish  for  the 
support  of  the  Indians."  The  contributions  thus 
levied  were  all  collected  at  the  house  of  Melo^hc, 
near  Parent's  Creek,  whence  they  A^ere  regularly  is- 
sued, as  the  exigence  required,  to  the  savages  of 
the  different  camjis.  As  the  character  and  habits  of 
an  Indian  but  ill  qualify  him  to  act  the  part  of 
commissarv,  Pontiac  in  this  matter  availed  himself 
of  French  assistance. 

On  the  river  bank,  not  fiir  from  the  house  of 
Meloche,  lived  an  old  Canadian,  named  QuUlcriez,  a 
man  of  exceeding  vanity  and  self-conceit,  and  noted 
in  the  settlement  for  the  gayety  of  his  attire.  lie 
wore  moccasons  of  the  most  elaborate  pattern,  aiul 
a  sash  plentifully  garnished  with  beads  and  wam- 
pum.     He    was     continually    intemieddling    in    the 


1  Prltier'g  Ap^nnnt   ATS 


2  Gouin'a  Account,  MS. 


AP.  XII. 


Ciup.  XII] 


llE  ISSUES  rnOMISBORY  NOTES. 


225 


affairs  of  the  Indians,  being  anxious  to  be  regarded 
as  the  leader  or  director  among  them.^  Of  this  man 
Pontiac  eviiicntly  made  a  tool,  employing  him,  to- 
gether with  several  others,  to  discharge,  beneath  his 
eye,  the  duties  of  his  novel  commissariat.  Anxious 
to  avoid  offending  the  French,  yet  unable  to  make 
compensation  for  the  provisions  he  had  exacted,  Pon- 
tiac had  recourse  to  a  remarkable  expedient,  sug- 
gested, no  doubt,  by  one  of  these  European  assist- 
ants, lie  issued  promissory  notes,  drawn  upon  birch 
bark,  and  signed  with  the  figure  of  an  otter,  the 
totem  to  which  he  belonged  ;  and  we  are  told  by  a 
trustworthy  authority,  that  they  were  all  xaithfuUy 
redeemed.''  In  this,  as  in  several  other  instances,  he 
exhibits  an  openness  of  mind  and  a  power  of  adap- 
tation not  a  little  extraordinary  among  a  people 
whose  intellect  will  rarely  leave  tho  narrow  and 
deeply-cut  channels  in  which  it  has  run  for  ages, 
who  reject  instruction,  and  adhere  with  rigid  tenacity 
to  ancient  ideas  and  usages.  Pontiac  always  exhib- 
ited an  eager  desire  for  knowledge.  Rogers  repre- 
sents him  as  earnest  to  learn  the  military  art  as 
practised  among  Europeans,  and  as  inquiring  curi- 
ously into  the  mode  of  making  cloth,  knives,  and 
the  other  articles  of  Indian  trade.  Of  his  keen  and 
subtle  genius  we  have  the  following  singular  testi- 
mony from  the  pen  of  General  Gage:  "From  a 
paragraph  of  M.  D'Abbadie's  letter,  there  is  reason  to 
judge  of  Pontiac,  not  only  as  a  savage  possessed  of 
the  most  refined  cunning  and  treachery  natural  to 
the  Indians,  but  as  a  person  of  extraordinary  abil- 
ities.    He  says  that  he  keeps  two  secretaries,  one  to 

1  Tradition  related  by  M.  Baby. 

2  Rogers,  Account  of  North  America,  244. 

29 


•it. 

m 


226 


rONTLVC  AT  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XII. 


11 


1  •    ^? 


i 


■ 


"vvritc  for  him,  and  the  other  to  read  the  letters  he 
receives,  and  he  manages  them  so  as  to  keep  each 
of  them  ignorant  of  what  is  transacted  by  tlic 
other." ' 

Major  Rogers,  a  man  familiar  with  the  Indians, 
and  an  acute  judge  of  mankind,  speaks  in  the  high- 
est teiins  of  Pontiac's  character  and  talents.  *'  He 
puts  on,"  he  says,  "an  air  of  majesty  and  prmcely 
grandeur,  and  is  greatly  honored  and  revered  by  his 
subjects." " 

In  the  present  instance,  few  durst  infringe  the 
command  he  had  given,  that  the  property  of  the 
Canadians  shoidd  be  respected;  indeed,  it  is  said 
that  none  of  his  followers  a\  ould  cross  the  ciUtivated 
fields,  but  always  followed  the  beaten  paths ;  in  such 
awe  did  they  stand  of  his  displeasure.^  :    i 

Pontiac's  position  was  very  different  from  that  of 
an  ordinary  military  leader.  When  we  remember 
that  his  authority,  little  sanctioned  by  law  or  usage, 
was  derived  chiefly  from  the  force  of  his  own  indi- 
vidual mind,  and  that  it  was  exercised  over  a  people 
singidarly  impatient  of  restraint,  we  may  better  ap- 
preciate the  commanding  energy  that  coidd  hold 
control  over  spirits  so  intractable. 


1  MS.  Letter — Gage  to  Lord  Hal- 
ifax, April  1(5,  1704. 

E,xtract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — Wil- 
liam Smith,  Jr.,  to . 

"  New  York,  22d  Nov.  17G3. 
"  'Tis  an  old  saying  that  tlic  Devil 
is  ea.sier  raised  than  laid.  Sir  Jef- 
frey has  found  it  so,  with  tliese  In- 
dian Demons.  They  have  cut  his 
little  Army  to  Pieces,  &,  almost  if 
not  entirely  obstructed  the  Commu- 
nication to  the  Detroite,  where  the 
Enemy  arc  grown  very  numerous; 
and  from  whence  I  fancy  you'll  soon 


hoar,  if  any  survive  to  relate  them, 
very  tragical  Accounts.  The  Be- 
siegers are  led  on  by  an  enterprising 
Fellow  called  Pondiac.  He  is  a 
Genius,  for  he  possesses  great  Bra- 
very, Art,  &.  Oratory,  &  has  had  tlio 
Address  to  get  himself  not  only  at 
the  Head  of  his  Conriuerors,  but 
elected  Generalissimo  of  all  the  con- 
federate Forces  nrw  acting  against 
us  —  Perhaps  he  may  deserve  to  bo 
called  the  Mithridatcs  of  the  West." 

2  Rogers,  North  America,  240. 

3  Gouin's  Account,  MS. 


''.9. . 


CuAr.  XII.] 


TRAITS  OF  HIS  CHARACTER. 


227 


The  glaring  faults  of  Pontiac's  character  havo 
already  appeared  too  clearly.  He  was  artful  and 
treacherous,  bold,  fierce,  ambitious,  and  revengeful; 
yet  the  following  anecdotes  will  evince  that  noble 
and  generous  thought  was  no  stranger  to  the  savage 
hero  of  this  dark  forest  tragedy.  Some  time  after 
the  period  of  which  we  have  been  speaking,  Rogers 
came  up  to  Detroit  with  a  detachment  of  troops, 
and,  on  landing,  sent  a  bottle  of  brandy,  by  a  friendly 
Indian,  as  a  present  to  Pontiac.  The  Indians  had 
always  been  suspicious  that  the  English  meant  to 
poison  them.  Those  around  the  chief  endeavored  to 
persuade  him  that  the  brandy  was  drugged.  Pon- 
tiac listened  to  what  they  said,  and,  as  soon  as  the 
had  concluded,  poured  out  a  cup  of  the  liquor,  n^^  i 
immediately  drank  it,  saying  that  the  man  whose  life 
he  had  saved  had  no  power  to  lull  hiir,  Jlc  re- 
ferred to  his  having  prevented  the  Indians  from 
attacking  Rogers  and  his  party  when  on  their  way 
to  demand  the  surrender  of  Detroit.  The  story  may 
seiTe  as  a  counterpart  to  the  well-kno^vn  anecdote 
of  Alexander  the  Great  and  his  physician.^ 

Pontiac  had  been  an  old  friend  of  Baby;  and  one 
evening,  at  an  early  period  of  the  siege,  he  entered 
his  house,  and,  seating  himself  by  the  fire,  looked 
for  some  time  stcadUy  at  the  <^mbers.  At  length, 
raising  his  head,  he  said  he  hhd  heard  that  the 
English  had  ofiered  the  Canadian  a  bushel  of  sil- 
ver for  the  scalp  of  his  friend.  Baby  declared  that 
the  story  was  false,  and  protested  that  he  would 
never  betrn)  him.  Pontiac  for  a  moment  keenly 
studied  his  features.     "  INIy  brother  has   spoken  the 


J*"* 


1  Rogers,  North  America,  244. 


(■y 


t  i 


228 


PONTIAC  AT  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XII. 


truth,"  he  said,  "and  I  will  show  that  I  believe 
him."  He  remained  in  the  house  through  the  even- 
ing, and,  at  its  close,  wrapped  himself  in  his  blanket, 
and  lay  down  upon  a  bench,  where  he  slept  in  full 
confidence  till  morning.^  -  -     ■ 

Another  anecdote,  from  the  same  source,  will  ex- 
hibit the  power  which  he  exercised  over  the  minds 
of  his  followers.  A  few  young  Wyandots  were  in 
the  habit  of  coming,  night  after  night,  to  the  house 
of  Baby,  to  steal  hogs  and  cattle.  The  latter  com- 
plained of  the  theft  to  Pontiac,  and  desired  his  protec- 
tion. Being  at  that  time  ignorant  of  the  intercourse 
between  Baby  and  the  English,  Pontiac  hastened  to 
the  assistance  of  his  friend,  and,  arrivmg  about  night- 
fall at  the  house,  walked  to  and  fro  among  the  bams 
and  enclosures.  At  a  late  hour,  he  distinguished  the 
dark  forms  of  the  plunderers  stealing  through  the 
gloom.  "  Go  back  to  your  village,  you  Wyandot 
dogs,"  said  the  Ottawa  cliief;  "if  you  tread  again  on 
this  man's  land,  you  shall  die."  They  slunk  buck 
abashed;  and  from  that  time  forward,  the  Canadian's 
property  was  safe.  The  Ottawas  had  no  political 
connection  with  the  Wyandots,  who  speak  a  lan- 
guage radically  distinct.  Over  them  he  could  claim 
no  legitimate  authority;  yet  his  powerful  spirit  forced 
respect  and  obedience  from  all  who  approached  him.- 

'  Tradition  related  by  M.  Francois  Pontiac's  friend,  who  lives  opposite 

Babv.  ,  Detroit,  upon  nearly  the  saine  site 

8  Tradition  related  by  M.  Francois  formerly  occupied   by  his   futhcr'a 

Baby,  of  Windsor,  U.  C.,  tlie  eon  of  house. 


A-. 


CHAPTEE  XIII. 

ROUT  OP  CUYLER'S  DETACHMENT.  ~  FATE  OP  THE 
FOREST  GARRISONS. 

While  perils  were  thickening  around  the  garrison 
of  Detroit,  the  British  commander-in-chief  at  New 
York  remained  ignorant  of  then-  danger.  Indeed, 
an  unwonted  quiet  had  prevailed,  of  late,  along  the 
borders  and  about  the  neighboring  forts.  With  the 
opening  of  spring,  a  strong  detachment  had  been  sent 
up  the  lakes,  with  a  supply  of  provisions  and  ammu- 
nition for  the  use  of  Detroit  and  the  other  western 
posts.  The  boats  of  this  convoy  were  now  pursu- 
ing their  course  along  the  northern  shore  of  Lake 
Erie;  and  Gladwyr's  garrison,  aware  of  their  ap- 
proach, awaited  their  arrival  with  an  anxiety  which 
every  day  increased. 

Day  after  day  passed  on,  and  the  red  cross  of  St. 
George  still  floated  above  Detroit.  The  keen-eyed 
watchfulness  of  the  Indians  had  never  abated;  and 
woe  to  the  soldier  who  showed  his  head  above  the 
palisades,  or  exposed  his  person  before  a  loophole. 
Strong  in  his  delusive  hope  of  French  assistance,  Pon- 
tiac  had  sent  messengers  to  M.  Neyon,  commandant 
at  the  Illinois,  earnestly  requesting  that  a  force  of 
regular  troops  might  be  sent  to  his  assistance ;  and 
Gladwyn,  on  his  side,  had  ordered  one  of  the  vessels 
to  Niagara,  to  hasten  forward  the  expected  convoy. 

T 


i4 


3 


W'    1 


I 


II 


230 


ROUT  OF  CUYLEB'S  DETACHMENT.      [Chap.  XIU. 


fi'l- 


The  schooner  set  sail;  but  on  the  next  day,  as  she 
lay  becalmed  at  the  entrance  of  Lake  Erie,  a  multi- 
tude of  canoes  suddenly  darted  out  upon  her  from 
the  neighboring  shores.  In  the  prow  of  the  foremost 
the  Indians  had  placed  their  prisoner.  Major  Camp- 
bell, with  the  dastardly  purpose  of  interposing  him 
as  a  sci-een  between  themselves  and  the  fire  of  the 
English.  But  the  brave  old  man  called  out  to  the 
crew  to  do  their  duty,  without  regard  to  him.  Hap- 
pily, at  that  moment  a  fresh  breeze  sprang  up;  the 
flapping  sails  stretched  to  the  wind,  and  the  schooner 
bore  prosperously  on  her  course  towards  Niagara, 
leaving  the  savage  flotilla  far  behind.^         ;; ■ , 

The  fort,  or  rather  town,  of  Detroit  had,  by  this 
time,  lost  its  wonted  vivacity  and  life.  Its  narrow 
streets  were  gloomy  and  silent.  Here  and  there 
strolled  a  Canadian,  in  red  cap  and  gaudy  sash;  the 
weary  sentinel  walked  to  and  fro  before  the  quarters 
of  the  commandant;  an  oflicer,  perhaps,  passed  along 
with  rapid  step  and  anxious  face;  or  an  Indian  girl, 
the  mate  of  some  soldier  or  trader,  moved  silently  by, 
in  her  finery  of  beads  and  vermilion.  Such  an  aspect 
as  this  the  town  must  have  presented  on  the  morn- 
ing  of  the  thirtieth  of  May,  when,   at  about  nine 


'  Penn.  Gaa.  No.  1807.  MS.  Let- 
ter  —  Wilkins  to  Amherst,  June  18. 

This  incident  may  have  suggested 
the  story  told  by  Mrs.  Grant,  m  her 
Memoirs  of  an  American  Lady.  A 
vi  ng  British  officer,  of  noble  birth, 
had  been  living  for  some  time  among 
the  Indians,  and  having  encountered 
many  strange  adventures,  he  was  now 
returning  in  a  canoe  with  a  party  of 
hif  lute  associates,  —  none  of  them,  it 
appears,  were  aware  that  hostilities 
existed,— and  approached  the  schoon- 
er just  before  the  attack  commenced, 
expecting  a  friendly  reception.    Sir 


Robert  D ,  the  young  officer,  was 

in  Indian  costume,  and  wishing  to 
surprise  his  friends,  he  made  no  an- 
swer when  hailed  from  tiie  vessel, 
whereupon  ho  was  instantly  firod  at 
and  killed.— The  story  is  without  ccu- 
iinnation  in  any  contemporary  docu- 
ment, and,  indeed,  is  impossible  iii 
itself.  Sir  Robert  Davers  was  killed, 
as  before  mentioned,  near  Lake  St. 
Clair;  but  neither  in  his  character, 
nor  in  the  mode  of  his  death,  did  he  at 
all  resemble  tlie  romantic  advoiitiirer 
whose  fate  is  commemorated  by  Mrs. 
Grant. 


Chap.  XIII.] 


RELIEF  AT  HAND. 


231 


o'clock,  the  voice  of  the  sentinel  sounded  from  the 
south-east  bastion,  and  loud  exclamations,  in  the  di- 
rection of  the  river,  roused  Detroit  from  its  lethargy. 
Instantly  the  place  was  astir.  Soldiers,  traders,  and 
hahitans,  hurrying  through  the  water  gate,  thronged 
the  canoe  wharf  and  the  narrow  strand  without.  The 
half-wild  coureurs  des  hois,  the  tall  and  sinewy  pro- 
vincials, and  the  stately  British  soldiers,  stood  crowded 
together,  their  uniforms  soiled  and  worn,  and  their 
faces  haggard  with  unremitted  watching.  Yet  all 
alike  wore  an  animated  and  joyous  look.  The  long- 
expected  convoy  was  full  in  sight.  On  the  farther 
side  of  the  river,  at  some  distance  below  the  fort,  a 
line  of  boats  was  rounding  the  woody  projection,  then 
called  Montreal  Point,  their  oars  flashing  in  the  sun, 
and  the  red  flag  of  England  flying  from  the  stern 
of  the  foremost.^  The  toils  and  dangers  of  the  garri- 
son were  drawing  to  an  end.  With  one  accord,  they 
broke  into  three  hearty  cheers,  again  and  again  re- 
peated, while  a  cannon,  glancing  from  the  bastion, 
sent  its  loud  voice  of  defiance  to  the  enemy,  and 
welcome  to  approaching  friends.  But  suddenly  every 
cheek  grew  pale  with  horror.  Dark  naked  figures 
were  seen  rising,  with  wild  gesture,  in  the  boats, 
while,  in  place  of  the  answering  salute,  the  distant 
yell  of  the  war-whoop  fell  faintly  on  their  ears.  The 
convoy  was  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy.  The  boats 
had  all  been  taken,  and  the  troops  of  the  detachment 
slain  or  made  captive.  Officers  and  men  stood  gazing 
in  mournful  silence,  when  an  incident  occurred  which 
caused  them  to  forget  the  general  calamity  m  the  ab- 
sorbing interest  of  the  moment. 


Mi 


f*  *■ 


SSS.1 


1  Pontiac  MS, 


M 


232 


ROUT  OP  CUTLERS  DETACHMENT.      [Chap.  XIII, 


7K  viv#{  'imxiv 


Leaving  the  disappointed  garrison,  we  will  pass  over 
to  the  principal  victims  of  this  deplorable  misfortune. 
In  each  of  the  boats,  of  which  there  were  eighteen, 
two  or  more  of  the  captured  soldiers,  deprived  of 
their  weapons,  were  compelled  to  act  as  rowers,  guard- 
ed by  several  armed  savages,  while  many  other  In- 
dians, for  the  sake  of  farther  security,  followed  the 
boats  along  the  shore.^  In  the  foremost,  as  it  hap- 
pened, there  were  four  soldiers  and  only  three  Indians. 
The  larger  of  the  two  vessels  still  lay  anchored  in 
the  stream,  about  a  bow-shot  from  the  fort,  while  her 
companioi,  as  we  have  seen,  had  gone  down  to  Ni- 
agara to  hasten  up  this  very  reenforcement.  As  the 
boat  came  opposite  this  vessel,  the  soldier  vrho  ac'cd 
as  steersman  conceived  a  daring  plan  of  escape.  The 
principal  Indian  sat  immediately  in  front  of  another 
of  the  soldiers.  The  steersman  called,  in  English, 
to  his  comrade  to  seize  the  savage  and  throw  him 
overboard.  The  man  answered  that  he  was  not  strong 
enough;  on  which  the  steersman  directed  him  to 
change  places  with  him,  as  if  fatigued  with  rowing, 
a  movement  which  would  excite  no  suspicion  on  the 
part  of  theu*  guard.  As  the  bold  soldier  stepped  for- 
ward, as  if  to  take  his  companion's  oar,  he  suddenly 
seized  the  Indian  by  the  hair,  and  griping  with  the 
other  hand  the  girdle  at  his  waist,  lifted  him  by  main 
force,  and  flung  him  into  the  river.  The  boat  rocked 
till  the  water  surged  over  her  gunwale.  The  Indian 
held  fast  to  his  enemy's  clothes,  and,  draAving  himself 
upward  as  he  trailed  alongside,  stabbed  him  again 
and  again  with  his  knife,  and  then  dragged  him 
overboard.     Both  went  down  the  swift  current,  rising 

I  Pontiac  MS. 


;hap.  XIII. 


Chap.  XIH.] 


ESCAPE  OF  PRISONERS. 


233 


ass  over 

fortune. 

ighteen, 

ived   of 

,  guard- 

her   In- 

ved  the 

it  hap- 

[ndians. 

ored  in 

hile  her 

to  Ni- 

As  the 

10  aclcd 

>e.     The 

another 

English, 

ow   him 

it  strong 

him    to 

rowing, 

L  on  the 

ped  foi- 

luddenly 

vith  the 

by  main 

;  rocked 

!  Indian 

himself 

a   again 

ed    him 

t,  rising 


and  sinking;  and,  as  some  relate,  perished,  grappled 
in  each   other's  arms.^     The   two  remaining  Indians 
leaped  out  of  the  boat.     The   prisoners  turned,  and 
pulled  for  the  distant  vessel,  shouting  aloud  for  aid 
The  Indians  on  shore  opened  a  heavy  fire  upon  them, 
and  many  canoes  paddled  swiftly  in   pursuit.     The 
men  strained  with  desperate  strength.     A  fate  inex- 
pressibly horrible  was  the  alternative.     The  bullets 
hissed  thickly  around  their  heads;  one  of  them  was 
soon  wounded,  and  the  light  birch  canoes  gamed  on 
them   with    fearful    rapidity.      Escape    seemed   hope- 
less, when  the  report  of  a  cannon  burst  from  the  side 
of  the  vessel.     The  ball  flew  close  past  the  boat,  beat- 
ing the  water  in  a  line  of  foam,  and  narrowly  miss- 
ing the  foremost  canoe.     At  this,  the  pursuers  drew 
back  in  dismay ;  and  the  Indians  on  shore,  being  far- 
ther saluted  by  a  second  shot,  ceased  firing,  and  scat- 
tered among  the  bushes.     The  prisoners  soon  reached 
the  vessel,  where  they  were  greeted  as  men  snatched 
from  the  jaws  of  fate ;  "  a  living  monument,"  writes  an 
officer  of  the  garrison,  "that  Fortune  favors  the  brave." ^ 
They  related  many  particulars  of  the  catastrophe 
which    had    befallen    them    and    their    companions. 
Lieutenant   Cuyler  had   left    Fort   Niagara  as   early 
as   the  thirteenth  of  May,  and  embarked  from  Fort 
Schlosser,  just  above  the  falls,  with  ninety-six  men 
and  a  plentiful  supply  of  provision   and  ammunition. 
Day  after  day  he  had   coasted   alon';   the    northern 
shore  of  Lake  Erie,  and  had  seen  neither  friend  nor 
foe  amid  those  lonely  forests  and  waters,  when,  on 


^  Another  witness,  Gouin,  affirms        3  t- ,,in.  Gaz.  No.  1807.    St  Au- 
that  ti;o  Indian  freed  himself  from  the  bin's    Account,  MS.    Peltie.'     Ac- 
dying  grasp  of  the  soldier,  and  swan  count,  MS. 
afiliorc. 

30  T* 


m 


I     I 


ir 


i'H 


23J 


ROUT  OF  CUYLER'S  DETACHMENT.       [Chap.  Xm. 


the  twenty-eighth  of  the  month,  he  landed  at  Point 
Pelce,  not  far  from  the  mouth  of  the  River  Detroit. 
The  boats  were  drawn  on  the  beach,  and  the  party 
prepared  to  encamp.  A  mari  aufl  iV  boy  went  to 
gather  firewood  at  a  shoil  tlis'unce  from  (he  spot, 
when  an  Indian  leaped  out  oi:  the  wood  ,  seized 
the  boy  by  the  haij ,  and  toiaa}.  iwJkt.  1  liln  ,  Tlie 
man  ran  into  camp  with  tht^  alarm.  Cu}lei  imme- 
diately formed  h\s  soldio}>'  into  a  semicircle  before 
the  boats.  He  had  scarcely  doii'^  so  when  ih:  enemy 
opened  their  fire.  Fv :  an  instant,  there  was  a  hot 
blaze  of  musketry  on  botli  sider. ;  ^hfsn  the  Indians 
broke  out  of  the  woods  in  a  botiy,  and  rushed  fiercely 
upon  the  centre  of  the  line,  which  gave  way  in  every 
part;  the  men  flinging  down  their  guns,  running  in 
a  IKnd  panic  to  the  boats,  and  struggling  with  ill- 
diiocted  eftbrts  to  shove  them  into  the  water.  Five 
were  se,"  afloat,  and  pushed  off"  from  the  shore,  crowd- 
ed with  the  terrified  soldiers.  Cuyler,  seeing  himself, 
as  he  says,  deserted  by  his  men,  waded  up  to  his 
neck  in  the  lake,  and  climbed  into  one  of  the  retreat- 
ing boats.  The  Indians,  on  their  part,  pushing  two 
more  afloat,  went  in  pursuit  of  the  fugitives,  three 
boat  loads  of  whom  allowed  themselves  to  be  recap- 
tured Avithout  resistance;  but  the  remaining  two,  in 
one  of  which  was  Cuyler  himself,  made  their  escape.' 
They  rowed  all  night,  and  landed  in   the  morning 


'  "  Being  abandoned  by  my  men, ; 
was  Forced  to  Retreat  in  the  best 
manner  I  could.  I  was  left  witli  6  men 
on  the  Beech,  Endeavoring  to  get  off 
a  Boat,  which  not  being  able  to  Et- 
fcct,  was  Obliged  to  Run  up  to  my 
Neck,  in  the  Lake,  to  get  to  a  Boat 
that  had  pushed  off,  without  my 
Knowledge.  —  When  I  was  in  the 
Lake  I  saw  Five  Boats  maimed,  an>: 


the  Indians  hs\inv  manned  two 
Boats,  pursued  ana  Brought  back 
Three  of  the  Five,  keeping  a  con- 
tinual Fire  from  off  tlio  Shore,  and 
from  the  two  Boats  that  followed  us, 
about  a  Mile  on  the  Lake  ;  tlie  Wind 
fringing  up  fair,  I  and  the  otlicr 
',  Miaining  Boat  Hoisted  sail  a;,  f  Es- 
Hi."—Cuyler'8  Report,  MS. 


I 


<  I  n 


-  t 


Chap.  XIH.] 


INDIAN  DEBAUCH. 


235 


upon  a  small  island.  Between  t^^'rty  and  forty  men, 
some  of  whom  were  wounded,  were  crowded  in  these 
two  boats;  the  rest,  about  sixty  in  number,  being 
killed  or  taken.  Cuyler  now  made  for  Sandusky, 
which,  on  his  arrival,  hp  found  burnt  to  the  ground. 
Immediately  leaving  the  spot,  he  rowed  along  the 
south  shore  to  Presqu'Isle,  from  whence  he  proceeded 
to  Niagara,  and  reported  his  loss  to  Major  Wilkins, 
the  commanding  officer.^ 

The  actors  in  this  bold  and  well-executed  stroke 
were  the  Wyandots,  who,  for  some  days,  had  lain  in 
ambush  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  to  intercept  trading 
boats  or  parties  of  troops.  Seeing  the  extreme  fright 
and  confusion  of  Cuyler's  men,  they  had  forgotten 
their  usual  caution,  and  rushed  upon  them  in  the 
manner  described.  The  ammunition,  provision,  and 
other  articles,  taken  in  this  attack,  formed  a  valuable 
prize;  but,  unfortunately,  there  was,  among  the  rest, 
a  great  quantity  of  whiskey.  This  the  Indians  seized, 
and  carried  to  their  respective  camps,  which,  through- 
out the  night,  presented  a  scene  of  savage  revelry 
and  riot.     The  liquor  was  poured  into  vessels  of  birch- 


'  Cuyler's  Report,  MS. 
Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter — Major 
Wilkins  to  Sir  J.  Amherst 

"  Niagara,  6th  June,  1763. 
"Just  fis  I  was  sending  off  my 
Letter  of  Yosterday,  Lieutenant  Cuy- 
ler, of  the  Queen's  Rangers,  Arrived 
from  his  Intended  Voyage  to  the  De- 
troit. Ho  has  been  very  Unfortunate, 
Having  been  Defeated  by  Indians 
within  30  iniies  of  the  Detroit  River ; 
T  obsevvi;d  'lat  he  was  Wounded  and 
',v  o.-ik,  Tinu  Ocsired  him  to  take  tlie 
Sur^'eo.i's  Assistan-e  aii'l  some  Rest, 
ttiid  Recoli;  ct  the  Particulars  of  the 
Affair,  and  let  me  have  th<^m  in 
Writing,  as  oerhaps  I  shcild  tind  it 


Necessary  to  Transmit  them  to  Your 
Excellency,  which  I  have  now  Done. 

"It  is  probable  Your  Excellency 
will  have  heard  of  what  has  Hap- 
pened by  way  of  Fort  Pitt,  as  Ensign 
Christie,  Commanding  at  Presqu'Isle, 
writes  me  he  has  sent  an  Express  to 
Acquaint  the  Commanding  Officer  at 
that  Place,  of  Sanduskie's  being  De- 
stroyed, and  of  Lieut.  Cuyler's  De- 
feat. 

"  Some  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations 
are  now  with  me.  They  seem  very 
Civil ;  The  Interpreter  has  just  told 
them  I  was  writing  to  Your  Excel- 
lency for  Rum,  and  they  are  very 
glad." 


5-. 


m 


236 


ROUT  OF  CUYLER'S  DETACHMENT.      [Chap.  XIII. 


.,|:. 


i  ;*• 


III'  'i 

ail '  i 


bark,  or  any  thing  capable  of  containing  it ;  and  the 
Indians,  crowding  around,  scooped  it  up  in  their  cups 
and  ladles,  and  quaffed  the  raw  whiskey  like  water. 
While  some  sat  apart,  wailing  and  moaning  in  maud- 
lin drunkenness,  others  were  maddened  to  the  ferocity 
of  wild  beasts.  Dormant  jealousies  were  awakened, 
old  forgotten  quarrels  kindled  afresh,  and  had  not 
the  squaws  taken  the  precaution  of  hiding  all  the 
weapons  they  could  find  before  the  debauch  began, 
much  blood  would,  no  doubt,  have  been  spilt.  As  it 
was,  the  savages  were  not  entirely  without  means  of 
indulging  their  drunken  rage.  Many  were  wounded, 
of  whom  two  died  in  the  morning ;  and  several  oth- 
ers had  their  noses  bioten  off — a  singular  mode  of 
revenge,  much  in  vogue  upon  similar  occasions,  among 
the  Indians  of  the  upper  lakes.  The  English  were 
gaine  's  by  this  scene  of  riot ;  for  late  in  the  evening, 
two  Indians,  in  all  the  valor  and  vain-glory  of  drunk- 
enness, came  running  directly  towards  the  fort,  boast- 
ing their  prowess  in  a  loud  voice;  but  being  greeted 
with  two  rifle  bullets,  they  leaped  into  the  air  like  a 
pair  of  wounded  bucks,  and  fell  dead  on  their  tracks. 
It  will  not  be  pro^  or  to  pass  over  in  silence  the 
fate  of  the  unfortunate  men  taken  prisoners  in  this 
affair.  After  night  had  set  in,  several  Canadians 
came  to  the  fort,  bringing  vague  and  awful  reports 
of  the  scenes  that  had  been  enacted  at  the  Indian 
camp.  The  soldiers  gat'nerod  round  them,  and,  frozen 
with  horror,  listened  io  the  appalling  narrative.  A 
cloud  of  deep  gloom  sank  down  upon  the  garjison, 
and  none  could  help  reflecting  how  thin  and  frail  a 
barrier  protected  them  from  a  similar  fate.  On  the 
following  day,  and  for  several  succeeding  days,  they 
beheld  friglitful  confirmation  of  the  rumors  they  liad 


Ciup.  XIII.1 


FATE  OF  THE  CAPTIVES. 


237 


heard.  Naked  corpses,  gashed  with  knives  and 
scorched  with  fire,  floated  down  on  the  pure  waters 
of  the  Detroit,  whose  fish  came  up  to  nibble  at  the 
clotted  blood  that  clung  to  their  ghastly  faces.^ 

Late  one  afternoon,  at  about  this  period  of  the 
siege,  the  garrison  were  again  greeted  with  the  dismal 
ciy  of  death,  and  a  line  of  naked  warriors  was  seer 
issuing  from  the  woods,  which,  like  a  wall  of  foliage, 
rose  beyond  the  pastures  in  rear  of  the  fort.  Each 
savage   was  painted  black,  and   each   bore   a    scalp 


1  "The  Indians,  fearing  that  the 
other  barges  might  escape  as  the  first 
had  done,  changed  their  plan  of  going 
to  the  camp.  They  landed  theii^ 
prisoners,  tied  them,  and  conducted 
them  by  land  to  the  Ottawaa  village, 
and  then  crossed  them  to  Pondiac's 
camp,  where  they  were  all  butchered. 
As  soon  as  the  canoes  reached  tlie 
shore,  the  barbarians  landed  their 

Erisoners,  one  after  the  other,  on  the 
each.  They  made  them  atrip  them- 
selves, and  tlien  sent  arrows  into  dif- 
ferent parts  of  theii:  bodies.  These 
unfortunate  men  wished  sometimes 
to  throw  themselves  on  the  ground  to 
avoid  the  arrows ;  but  they  were  beat- 
en with  sticks  and  forced  to  stand  up 
until  they  fell  dead ;  after  which  those 
who  had  not  fired  fell  upon  their 
bodies,  cut  them  in  pieces,  cooked, 
and  ate  them.  On  ouiers  they  exer- 
cised different  modes  of  torment  by 
cutting  their  flesh  with  flints,  and 
piercing  them  with  lances.  They 
would  uien  cut  their  feet  and  hands 
off,  and  leave  them  weltering  in  their 
blood  till  they  were  dead.  Others 
wore  fastened  to  stakes,  and  chil- 
dren employed  in  burning  tliem  with 
a  slow  fire.  No  kind  of  torment  was 
left  untried  by  these  Indians.  Some 
of  the  bodies  were  left  on  shore ;  oth- 
ers were  thrown  into  the  river.  Even 
tlie  women  assisted  their  husbands  in 
torturing  their  victims.  They  slitted 
tJiem  with  their  knives,  and  mangled 
icm  in  various  ways.    There  were, 


however,  a  few  whose  lives  were 
saved,  being  adopted  to  serve  a& 
slaves."  —  Pontiac  MS. 

"  The  remaining  barges  pro- 
ceeded up  the  river,  and  crossed  to 
the  house  of  Mr.  Meloche,  where 
Pontiac  and  his  Ottawas  were  en- 
camped. The  barges  were  landed, 
and,  the  women  having  arranged 
themselves  in  two  rows,  with  clubs 
and  sticks,  tlie  prisoners  were  taken 
out,  one  by  one,  and  told  to  run  the 
gantlet  to  Pontiac's  lodgo,  Of  sixty - 
six  persons  who  were  br.  ught  to  the 
shore,  sixty-four  ran  the  gantlet,  and 
were  allkilled.  One  of  the  r""-.  in- 
ing  two,  who  had  had  his  'a  'i 
broken  in  tije  firing  from  the  ^utir, 
and  who  was  tied  to  his  seat  and 
compelled  to  row,  had  become  by 
this  time  so  much  exhausted  that  he 
could  not  help  himself.  He  was 
thrown  out  of  the  boat  and  killed 
with  clubs.  The  other,  when  di- 
rected to  run  for  the  lodge,  suddenly 
fell  upon  his  knees  in  the  water,  and 
having  dipped  his  hand  in  the  water, 
he  made  the  sign  of  the  cross  on  his 
forehead  and  breast,  i<i<1  dnHed  out 
in  the  stream.    An  e.  immcr 

from  the  Indians  follow  cu  him,  and, 
having  overtaken  him,  seized  him  by 
the  hair,  and  crying  out, '  You  seem 
to  love  water ;  you  shall  have  enough 
of  it,'  he  stabbed  the  poor  fellow, 
who  sunk  to  rise  no  more." — Gown's 
Jiccount,  MS. 


238 


ii 


FATE  OF  TUE  FOREST  GARRISONS.      [Chap.  XIII. 


fluttering  from  the  end  of  a  pole.  It  was  but 
too  clear  that  some  new  disaster  had  befallen;  and 
in  truth,  before  nightfall,  one  La  Brosse,  a  Canadian, 
(.vno  *o  the  gate  with  tht-  tidings  that  Fort  San- 
du'lx  had  been  taken,  and  all  its  garrison  slain  or 
made  captive.^  This  post  had  been  attacked  by  the 
band  of  Wyandots  living  in  its  neighborhood,  aided 
by  a  detachment  of  their  brethren  from  Detroit. 
Among  the  f'^w  ^umvors  of  the  slaughter  was  the 
comma  riding  officer,  Liisign  Paully,  who  had  been 
brought  prisr>ner  to  Detroit,  bound  hand  and  foot, 
and  solaced  on  the  passage  with  the  expectation  of 
being  burnt  alive.  On  landing  near  the  camp  of 
Pontiac,  he  was  surrounded  by  a  crowd  of  Indians, 
chiefly  squaws  and  children,  who  pelted  him  with 
stones,  sticks,  and  gravel,  forcing  him  to  dance  .md 
sing,  though  by  no  means  in  a  cheerful  strain.  A 
worse  infliction  seemed  in  store  for  him,  when  hai> 
pily  an  old  woman,  whose  hus^  nd  had  lat  died, 
chose  to  adopt  him  in  place  of  the  deceased  w  nor. 
Seeing  no  alternative  but  the  stake,  Paully  accL^>ted 
the  proposal ;  and  having  been  first  plunged  in  ^ 
river,  that  the  white  blood  might  be  washed  from 
his  veins,  he  was  conducted  to  the  lodge  of  the 
widow,  and  heated  thenceforth  with  all  the  considor- 
ativ^-i  due  t     an  Ottuwa  warrior. 

Gladwyn  soon  received  a  letter  from  him,  througli 
cu  e  of  the  Canadian  inhabitants,  giving  a  fidl  ac- 
count of  lie  capture  of  Fort  Sandusky.  On  the 
sixteenth  of  "'^lay  —  such  was  the  substance  of  the 
commuTi  atioi) — Pai  lly  was  informed  that  seven  In- 
dians ^  '  V  itmg  ai  the  gate  to  speak  with  him. 
As  several  ot   the  number  were  well  known  to  him, 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


CHAr.  XIII.] 


rORT  SANDUSKY. 


239 


he  ordered  them,  \>  hout  hesitation,  to  be  admitted. 
Arrived  at  his  quarters,  t^vo  of  the  treacherou.s  vis- 
itors seated  themselves  on  each  side  of  the  command- 
ant, while  the  rest  were  disposed  in  various  parts 
of  the  room.  The  pipes  were  lighted,  and  the  con- 
versation began,  when  an  Indian,  who  stood  in  the 
doorway,  suddenly  made  a  signal  by  raising  his  head. 
Upon  this,  the  astonished  officer  was  instantly  pouncci.1 
upon  and  disarmed ;  while,  at  the  same  moment,  a 
confused  noise  of  shrieks  and  yoUs,  the  firing  of 
guns,  and  the  hu  ried  tramp  of  feet,  sounded  from 
the  area  of  the  fort  without.  It  soon  ceased,  how- 
ever, and  PauUy,  led  by  his  captors  from  the  room, 
saw  the  paradf  ground  strown  with  the  corpses  of 
his  murdered  garrison.  At  nightfall,  he  was  con- 
ducted to  the  margin  of  the  lake,  where  several 
birch  canoes  lay  hi  readiness;  and  as,  amid  thick 
darkness,  the  party  pushed  out  from  shore,  the  cap- 
tive saw  tlic  fort,  lately  under  his  command,  bursting 
on  all  sides  into  sheets  of  flame.^ 

Soon  after  these  tidings  of  the  loss  of  Sandusky, 
Gladwyn's  garrison  heard  the  scarcely  less  unwel- 
come news  that  the  strength  of  their  besiegers  had 
been  reenforced  by  two  strong  bands  of  Ojibwas. 
Pontiac's  forces  in  the  vicinity  of  Detroit  now 
amounted,  according  to  Canadian  computation,  to 
about  eight  hundred  and  twenty  warriors.  Of  these, 
two  hundred  and  fifty  were  Ottawas,  commanded  by 
himself  in  person;  one  hundred  and  fifty  were  Pot- 
tawattamies,  under  Ninivay ;  fifty  w  ere  Wyandots, 
under    Takee ;    tA\  o    hundred    ^^  ere    Ojibw^as,    under 


ili''^i 
J  *"'»> 


•K 


4     ^  »■ 


IMS. Offici,  1  Document — Report    Major  Gladwyn  to  Sir  Jeffrey  Am- 
of  the  Loss  of  tlie  Posts  in  the  Indian    herst,  July  8,  17G3. 
Country,  enclosed  in  a  letter  from 


■<> 


I 


240 


FATE  OP  THE  FOREST  <  i A  UIIISONS.       [Cuap.  XIII. 


.   ,'' 


Wosson;    and   added   to    these  were  a  hundred  and 
seventy  of  the  same  tribe,  under  their  chief,  Sekahos.' 
As  the  warriors  brought  their  squaws   and  children 
with  them,  the  whole  number  of  savages  congregated 
about    Detroit    no    doubt   exceeded    three    thousand; 
and  the  neighboring   fields  and  meadows   must  have 
presented  a  picturesque  and  stirring  scene. 
*    The    sleepless   garrison,   worn   by   fatigue   and   ill 
fare,  and   harassed   by   constant   petty  attacks,  were 
yet  farther  saddened  by  the  news  of  disaster  whicli 
thickened    from    every    quarter.     Of    all    the    small 
posts    scattered   at  wide   intervals   through  the   vast 
wilderness    to    the   westward    of   Niagara    and    Fort 
Pitt,  it   soon   appeared   that   Detroit  alone  had   been 
able   to   sustain  itself.     For  the  rest,  there  was  but 
one    unvaried    tale   of   calamity   and    ruin.     On    the 
fifteenth  of  June,  a  number  of  Pottawattamies  were 
seen  approaching  the  gate  of  the  fort,  bringing  with 
them  four  English   prisoners,  who  proved  to  be  En- 
sign   Schlosser,  lately   commanding   at   St.   Joseph's, 
together  with    three    private    soldiers.     The   Indians 
wished    to   exchange   them  for  several  of  their  own 
tribe,  who  had  been  for  nearly  two  months  prisoners 
in  the  fort.     After  some  delay,  this  was  effected,  and 
the  garrison  then  learned  the   unhappy  fate  of  their 
comrades   at   St.   Joseph's.     This    post   stood    at   the 
mouth  of  the  River  St.  Joseph's,  near  the  head  of 
Lake  Michigan,  a  spot  which  had  long  been  the  site 
of    a    Roman    Catholic    mission.     Here,    among   the 
forests,  swamps,  and  ocean-like  waters,  at  an  unmeas- 
ured  distance  from   any  abode  of  civilized  man,  the 
daring   and   indefatigable  Jesuits    had    labored   more 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


Chap.  XHI.] 


PORT  ST.  JOSEPH. 


241 


than  half  a  century  for  the  spiritual  good  of*  the 
Pottawattamies,  who  lived  in  great  numbers  near  the 
margin  of  the  lake.  As  early  as  the  year  1712,  as 
Father  Marest  informs  us,  the  mission  was  in  a 
thriving  state,  and  around  it  had  gathered  a  little 
colony  of  the  forest-loving  Canadians.  Here,  too, 
the  French  government  had  established  a  military 
post,  whose  garrison,  at  the  period  of  our  narrative, 
had  been  supplanted  by  Ensign  Schlosser,  with  his 
command  of  fourteen  men,  a  mere  handful,  in  the 
heart  of  a  wilderness  swarming  with  insidious  en- 
emies. They  seem,  however,  to  have  apprehended  no 
danger,  when,  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  May,  early  in 
the  morning,  the  officer  was  informed  that  a  large 
party  of  the  Pottawattamies  of  Detroit  had  come  to 
pay  a  visit  to  their  relatives  at  St.  Joseph's.  Imme- 
diately after,  a  Canadian  came  in  with  intelligence 
that  the  fort  was  surrounded  by  Indians,  who  evi- 
dently had  hostile  intentions.  At  this,  Schlosser  ran 
out  of  the  apartment,  and  crossing  the  parade,  which 
was  full  of  Indians  and  Canadians,  hastily  entered 
the  barracks.  These  were  also  crowded  with  savages, 
very  insolent  and  disorderly.  Calling  upon  his  ser- 
geant to  get  the  men  under  arms,  he  hastened  out 
again  to  the  parade,  and  endeavored  to  muster  the 
Canadians  together;  but  while  busying  himself  with 
these  somewhat  unwilling  auxiliaries,  he  heard  a  wild 
cry  from  within  the  barracks.  Instantly  all  the  In- 
dians in  the  fort  rushed  to  the  gate,  tomahawked 
the  sentinel,  and  opened  a  free  passage  to  their  com- 
rades without.  In  less  than  two  minutes,  as  the 
officer  declares,  the  fort  was  plundered,  eleven  men 
were  killed,  and  himself,  with  the  three  survivors, 
made  prisoners,  and  bound  fast.  They  then  con- 
31  V 


5  ■"::  k 


Ml 


■if 


242 


FATE  OF  THE  FOREST  GARRISONS.     [Chap.  XHI. 


,.n 


ducted  him  to  Detroit,  wheie  he  was  exchanged,  as 
we  hrtVe  already  seen.^ 

Three  days  after  these  tidings  reached  Detroit, 
Father  Jonois,  a  Jesuit  priest  of  the  Ottawa  mission 
near  MichUlimackinac,  came  to  Fontiac's  camp,  to- 
gether with  the  SOP  of  Minavavana,  great  chief  of 
the  Ojibwas,  and  several  other  Indians.  On  the  fol- 
lowing morning,  he  appeared  at  the  gate  of  the  fort, 
bringing  a  letter  from  Captain  Etherington,  com- 
mandant at  Michillimackinac.  The  commencement 
of  the  letter  was  as  follows:  — 

"  Michillimackinac,  13  June,  1763. 
«  Sir : 

"Notwithstanding  what  I  wrote  you  in  my  last, 
that  all  the  savageb  were  arrived,  and  that  every 
thing  seemed  in  perfect  tranquillity,  yet  on  the  fourth 
instant,  the  Chippeways,  who  live  in  a  plain  near 
this  fort,  assembled  to  play  ball,  as  they  had  done 
almost  every  day  since  their  arrival.  They  played 
from  morning  tiU  noon;  then,  throwing  their  ball 
close  to  the  gate,  and  observing  Lieutenant  Lesley 
and  me  a  few  paces  out  of  it,  they  came  behind 
us,  seized  and  carried  us  into  the  woods. 

"In  the  mean  time,  the  rest  rushed  into  the  fort, 
where  they  found  their  squaws,  whom  they  had  pre- 
viously planted  there,  with  their  hatchets  hid  under 
their  blankets,  which  they  took,  and  in  an  instant 
kiQed  Lieutenant  Jamet,  and  fifteen  rank  and  file, 
and  a  trader  named  Tracy.  They  wounded  two,  and 
took  the  rest  of  the  garrison  prisoners,  five  of  whom 
they  have  since  killed.  * 


^  ^/^' 


1  Loss  of  the  Poets  in  the  Indian  Country,  MS.      :' 


Chap.  XHI.] 


rOBT  OUATANON. 


243 


"  They  made  prisoners  all  the  English  traders,  and 
robbed  them  of  every  thing  they  had;  but  they 
offered  no  violence  to  the  persons  or  property  of 
any  of  the  Frenchmen;" 

Captain  Etherington  next  related  some  particulars 
of  the  massacre  at  Michillimackinac,  sufficiently  star- 
tling, as  will  soon  appear.  He  spoke  in  high  terms 
of  the  character  and  conduct  of  Father  Jonois,  and 
requested  that  Gladwyn  would  send  all  the  troops 
he  could  Bpare  up  Lake  Huron,  that  the  post  might 
be  recaptured  from  the  Indians,  and  garrisoned  afresh. 
Gladwyn,  being  scarcely  able  to  defend  himself,  could 
do  nothing  for  the  relief  of  his  brother  officer,  and 
the  JTesuit  set  out  on  his  long  and  toilsome  canoe  voy- 
age back  to  MichiUimackinac*  The  loss  of  t*is  place 
was  a  very  serious  misfortune,  for,  next  to  Detroit, 
it  war  the  most  important  post  on  the  upper  lakes. 

The  next  news  which  came  in  was  that  of  the 
loss  of  Ouatanon,  a  fort  situated  upon  the  Wabash, 
a  little  below  the  site  of  the  present  town  of  La 
Fayette.  Gladwyn  received  a  letter  from  its  com- 
manding officer,  Lieutenant  Jenkins,  informing  him 
that,  on  the  first  of  June,  he  and  several  of  his  men 
had  been  made  prisoners  by  stratagem,  on  which  the 
rest  of  the  garrison  had  surrendered.  The  Indians, 
however,  apologized  for  their  conduct,  declaring  that 
they  acted  contrary  to  their  own  inclinations,  and 
that  the  surrounding  tribes  had  compelled  them  to 
take  up  the  hatchet.*^    These  excuses,  so  consolatory 

1  Pontiac  MS.  we  are  not  in  much  better,  for  tliis 

^  '*  Ouatanon,  June  Ist,  1763.  morning  the  Indians  sent  for  me,  to 

"  Sir :  speak  to  me,  and  Itnmediatelv  bound 

"  I  have  heard  of  your  situation,  me,  when  I  got  to  their  Cabbin,  and 

wliich  gives  me  great  Pain ;  mdeed,  I  soon  found  some  of  my  Soldiers  in 


vf 


IK^>^ 


li 


Mlii.lii 


i 


',i'> 


HH 


FATE  OF  THE  FOREST  OABRISONS.      [Chap.  XHI. 


to  the  sufferers,  might  probably  have  been  founded 
in  truth,  for  these  savages  were  of  a  character  less 
ferocious  than  many  of  the  others,  and  as  they  were 
farther  emoved  from  the  settlements,  they  had  not 
felt  to  an  equal  degree  the  effects  of  English  inso- 
lence and  encroachment. 

Close  upon  these  tidings  came  the  news  that  Fort 
Miami  was  taken.  This  post,  standing  on  tho  River 
Maumee,  was  commanded  by  Ensign  Holmes ;  and 
here  I  cannot  but  remark  on  the  forlorn  siti-ttion  of 
these  officers,  isolated  in  the  wilderness,  hundreds  of 
miles,  in  some  instances,  from  any  congenial  asso- 
ciates, separated  from  every  human  being  except  the 
rude  soldiers  under  their  command,  and  the  white 
or  red  savages  who  ranged  the  surrounding  woods. 
Holmes  suspected  the  intention  of  the  Indians,  and 
was  therefore  on  his  guard,  when,  on  the  twenty- 
seventh  of  May,  a  young  Indian  girl,  who  lived  with 
him,  came  to  tell  him  that  a  squaw  lay  dangerously 
ill  in  a  wigwam  near  the  fort,  and  urged  him  to 
come  to  her  relief    Having  confidence  in  the  girl, 


the  same  Condition :  They  told  me 
Detroit,  Miamis,  and  all  them  Posts 
were  cut  off,  and  that  it  was  a  Folly 
to  make  any  Resistance,  therefore 
desired  me  to  make  the  few  Soldiers, 
that  were  in  the  Fort,  surrender, 
otherwise  they  would  put  us  all  to 
Death,  in  case  one  man  was  killed. 
They  were  to  have  fell  on  us  and 
killed  us  all,  last  night,  but  Mr.  Mai> 
Bongville  and  Lorain  gave  them  wam- 
pum n*^*  to  kill  us,  &  when  they  told 
the  Interpreter  that  we  were  all  to 
be  killed,  &.  he  knowing  the  condi- 
tion of  the  Fort,  beg'd  of  them  to 
make  us  prisoners.  They  have  put 
us  mto  French  houses,  &  both  In- 
dians and  French  use  us  very  well : 
All  these  Nations  say  tliey  are  very 


sorry,  buc  that  they  were  obliged  to 
do  it  by  the  Other  Nations.  The 
Belt  did  not  Arrive  here  'till  last 
night  about  Eight  o'clock.  Mr.  Lo- 
ram  can  inform  you  of  all.  Just 
now  Received  the  News  of  St  Jo- 
seph's being  taken,  Eleven  men  killed 
and  three  taken  Prisoners  with  the 
Officer :  I  have  nothing  more  to  say, 
but  that  I  sincerely  wish  you  a 
speedy  succour,  and  that  we  may  be 
able  to  Reven^-^  ourselves  on  those 
that  Deserve  it. 

"I    Remain,  with   my  Sincercst 
wishes  for  your  safety, 

"  Your  most  humble  servant, 
"EflwD  Jenkins. 

"  N.  B.  We  expect  to  set  off  in  a 
day  or  two  for  the  Illinois." 


Chap.  Xm.] 


FORT  PEESQFISLE. 


245 


Holmes  followed  her  out  of  the  fort.  Pitched  at 
the  edge  of  a  meadow,  hidden  from  view  by  an  in- 
tervening spur  of  the  woodland,  stood  a  great  num- 
ber of  Indian  wigwams.  When  Holmes  came  in 
sight  of  them,  his  treacherous  conductress  pointed 
out  that  in  which  the  sick  woman  lay.  He  walked 
on  without  suspicion ;  but,  as  he  drew  near,  two  gims 
flashed  from  behind  the  hut,  and  stretched  him  life- 
less on  the  grass.  The  shots  were  heard  at  the  fort, 
and  the  sergeant  rashly  went  out  to  learn  the  reason 
of  the  firing.  He  was  immediately  taken  prisoner, 
amid  exulting  yells  and  whoopings.  The  soldiers  in 
the  fort  climbed  upou  the  palisades,  to  look  out, 
when  Godefiroy,  a  Canadian,  together  with  two  other 
white  men,  made  his  appearance,  and  simimoned 
them  to  surrender,  pr  mising  that  if  they  did  so, 
their  lives  should  be  spired,  but  that  otherwise  they 
would  all  be  killed  without  mercy.  The  men,  being 
in  great  terror,  and  without  a  leader,  soon  threw  open 
the  gate,  and  gave  themselves  up  as  prisoners.^ 

Had  detachments  of  Rogers'  Rangers  garrisoned 
these  posts,  or  had  they  been  held  by  such  men  as 
the  Rocky  Mountain  trappers  of  the  present  day, 
wary,  skilful,  and  almost  jgnorant  of  fear,  some  of 
them  might,  perhaps,  have  been  saved;  but  the  sol- 
diers of  the  60th  Regiment,  though  many  of  them 
were  of  provincial  birth,  were  not  qualified  by  their 
habits  and  discipline  for  this  kind  of  service. 

The  loss  of  Presqii'Isle  will  close  this  black  cata- 
logue of  calamity.  Rumors  of  it  first  reached  Detroit 
on  the  twentieth  of  June,  and  two  days  after,  the 
garrison  heard  those  dismal  cries,  announcing  scalps 


1  Loss  of  tlie  Posts,  MS. 


V 


!     I 


I -J' 


246 


PATE  OP  THE  POREST  GABRISONS.      [CHAP.Xin. 


and  prisoners,  which,  of  late,  had  grown  mournfully 
familiar  to  their  ears.  Indians  were  seen  passing,  in 
numbers,  dong  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river,  lead- 
ing several  English  prisoners,  who  proved  to  be  En- 
sign Christie,  the  commanding  officer  at  Presqu'Isle, 
with  those  of  Ms  soldiers  who  survived. 

There  had  been  hot  fighting  before  Presqu'Isle 
was  taken.  Could  courage  have  saved  it,  it  would 
never  have  fallen.  Tlie  fort  stood  near  the  site  of 
the  present  town  of  E."te,  on  the  southern  shore  of 
the  lake  which  bears  tb  i  same  name.  At  one  of  its 
angles  was  a  large  bloc/chouse,  a  species  of  structure 
much  used  in  the  pettv  forest  warfare  of  the  day.  It 
was  two  stories  in  height,  and  solidly  built  of  mas- 
sive timber,  the  diameter  of  the  upper  story  exceed- 
ing that  of  the  lower  by  several  feet,  so  that,  through 
oj>enings  in  the  projecting  floor  of  the  former,  the 
defenders  could  shoot  down  upon  the  heads  of  an 
enemy  assailing  the  outer  wall  below.  The  roof,  be- 
ing covered  with  shingles,  might  easily  be  set  on  fire; 
but  to  guard  against  this,  there  was  an  opening  at 
the  summit,  through  which  the  garrison,  partially 
protected  by  a  covering  of  plank,  might  pour  down 
water  upon  the  flames.  This  blockhouse  stood  on  a 
projecting  point  of  land,  between  the  lake  and  a  small 
brook  which  entered  .t  nearly  al  right  angles.  Un- 
fortunately, the  bank  of  the  brook  rose  in  a  high, 
steep  ridge,  within  forty  yards  of  the  blockhouse,  thus 
afibrding  a  cover  for  assailants,  while  the  bank  of 
the  lake  offered  similar  facilities  on  another  side. 

At  early  dawn  on  the  fifteenth  of  June,  the  gar- 
rison of  Presqu'Isle  were  first  awaie  of  the  enemy's 
presence;  and  when  the  sun  rose,  they  saw  themselves 
surrounded  by  two  hundred  Indians,  chiefly  from  the 


;chap.  xm. 

)umfully 
ssing,  in 
^er,  lead- 
)  be  En- 
3squ'Isle, 

esqu'Isle 
it  would 
!  site  of 
shore  of 
ne  of  its 
structure 
day.  It 
of  mas- 
r  exceed- 
,  through 
•mer,  the 
Is  of  an 
roof,  be- 
on  fire; 
ening  at 
partially 
ar  down 
)od  on  a 
1  a  small 
es.  Un- 
a  high, 
use,  thus 
bank  of 
side, 
the  gar- 
enemy's 
lemselves 
from  the 


Chap.  Xm.] 


FORT  PRESQU'ISLE. 


247 


neighborhood  of  Detroit.  At  the  first  alarm,  they 
abandoned  the  main  body  of  the  fort,  and  betook 
themselves  to  the  blockhouse  as  a  citadel.  The  In- 
dians, crowding  together  in  great  numbers,  under  cover 
of  the  rising  ground,  kept  up  a  rattling  fire,  and  not 
only  sent  their  uuilets  into  every  loophole  and  crevice, 
but  shot  fire-arrows  upon  the  roof,  and  threw  balls 
of  burning  pitch  against  the  walls.  Again  and  again 
the  building  took  fire,  and  again  and  again  the  flames 
were  extinguished.  The  Indians  now  rolled  logs  to 
the  top  of  the  ridges,  where  they  constructed  three 
strong  breastworks,  from  behind  which  they  could  dis- 
charge their  shot  and  throw  their  firr -balls  with  still 
greater  effect.  Some  of  them  tried  to  dart  across  the 
intervening  space,  and  shelter  themselves  in  the  ditch 
which  surrounded  the  fort;  but  all  of  these  were 
knied  or  woimded  in  the  attempt.  And  now  the  de- 
fenders could  see  the  Indians  throwing  up  earth  and 
stones,  behind  one  of  the  breastworks.  Their  impla- 
cable foes  were  laboring  to  undermine  the  block- 
house, a  sure  and  insidious  expedient,  against  which 
there  was  no  defence.  There  was  little  leisure  to  re- 
flect on  this  new  peril;  for  another  more  imminent 
and  horrible  soon  threatened  them.  The  barrels  of 
water,  always  kept  in  the  blockhouse,  were  nearly  emp- 
tied in  extinguishing  the  frequent  fires;  and  though 
there  was  a  weU  in  the  parade  ground,  yet  to  ap- 
proach it  would  be  certain  death.  The  only  resource 
was  to  dig  one  in  the  blockhouse  itself.  The  floor 
was  torn  up,  and  while  some  of  the  men  fired  their 
heated  muskets  from  the  loopholes,  to  keep  the  ene- 
my in  check,  the  rest  labored  with  desperate  energy 
at  this  toilsome  and  cheerless  task.  Before  it  was 
half  completed,  the  loof  was   again   on   fire,  and  all 


"E^^ 


■f' 


■i  ^  i: 


I  V 


248 


^\i 


FATE  OF  THE  FOREST  GARRISONS.      [Chap.  XHI. 


the  water  that  remained  was  poured  down  to  extin- 
guish it.  In  a  few  moments,  the  cry  of  fire  was  once 
more  raised,  when  a  soldier,  at  imminent  risk  of  his 
life,  tore  off  the  burning  shingles,  and  averted  the 
danger. 

By  this  time  it  was  evening.  From,  earliest  day- 
break, the  little  garrison  had  fought  and  toiled  with- 
out a  moment's  rest.  Nor  did  the  darkness  bring 
relief,  for  gmis  flashed  all  night  long  from  the  Indian 
intrenchments.  They  seemed  resolved  to  wear  out 
the  obstinate  defenders  by  fatigue;  and  while  some, 
in  their  turn,  were  sleeping,  the  rest  kept  up  the  as- 
sault. Morning  brought  fresh  dangers.  The  well 
had  been  for  some  time  complete;  and  it  was  happy 
that  it  was  so,  for  by  this  time  the  enemy  had  pushed 
their  subterranean  approaches  as  far  as  the  house  of 
the  commanding  officer,  which  they  immediately  set 
on  fire.  It  stood  on  the  parade,  close  to  the  block- 
house; and,  as  the  pine  logs  blazed  fiercely,  the  de- 
fenders were  nearly  stifled  by  the  heat.  The  outer 
wall  of  the  blockhouse  scorched,  blackened,  and  at 
last  burst  into  flame.  Still  the  undespairing  garrison 
refused  to  yield.  Passing  up  water  from  the  well  be- 
low, they  poured  it  down  upon  the  fire,  which  at 
length  was  happily  subdued,  while  the  blazing  house 
soon  sank  into  a  glowing  heap  of  embers.  The  men 
were  now,  to  use  the  words  of  their  ofiicer,  "  exhausted 
to  the  greatest  extremity ; "  yet  they  kept  up  their  for- 
lorn and  desperate  defence,  toiling  and  fighting  with- 
out pause,  within  the  wooden  walh  of  their  dark 
prison,  where  the  close  and  heated  atmosphere  was 
clogged  with  the  smoke  of  gunpowder.  The  fire 
on  both  sides  continued  through  the  day,  and  did 
not  cease  till  midnight ;   at  which  hour  a  voice  was 


Chap.  Xni.] 


FORT  PRESQIPISLE. 


249 


heard  to  call  out,  in  French,  from  the  enemy's  in- 
trenchments,  warning  the  garrison  that  farther  resist- 
ance would  be  useless,  since  preparations  were  made 
for  setting  the  blockhouse  on  fire,  above  and  below 
at  once.  Christie  demanded  if  there  were  any  among 
them  who  spoke  English ;  upon  which,  a  man  in  the 
Indian  dress  came  out  from  behind  the  breastwork. 
He  wuT  a  soldier,  who,  having  been  made  prisoner  early 
in  the  French  war,  had  since  lived  among  the  savages, 
and  now  espoused  their  cause,  fighting  with  them 
against  his  own  countrymen.  He  said  that  if  they 
yielded,  their  lives  should  be  spared,  but  if  they  fought 
longer,  they  must  all  be  burnt  alive.  Christie,  resolv- 
ing to  hold  out  as  long  as  a  shadow  of  hope  re- 
mained, told  them  to  wait  till  morning  for  his  answer. 
They  assented,  and  suspended  their  fire;  and  while 
some  of  the  garrison  watched,  the  rest  sank  exhausted 
into  a  deep  sleep.  When  morning  came,  Christie  sent 
out  two  soldiers,  as  if  to  treat  with  the  enemy,  but, 
in  reality,  to  learn  the  truth  of  what  they  had  said 
respecting  their  preparations  to  bum  the  blockhouse. 
On  reaching  the  breastwork,  the  soldiers  made  a  sig- 
nal, by  which  their  ofiicer  saw  that  his  worst  fears 
were  well  founded.  In  pursuance  of  their  orders, 
they  then  demanded  that  two  of  the  principal  chiefs 
should  meet  with  Christie  midway  between  the  breast- 
work and  the  blockhouse.  The  chiefs  appeared  ac- 
cordingly, and  Christie,  going  out,  yielded  up  the 
little  fortress  which  he  had  defended  with  such  in- 
domitable courage;  having  first  stipulated  that  the 
lives  of  all  the  garrison  should  be  spared,  and  that 
they  might  retire  unmolested  to  the  nearest  post. 
The  soldiers,  pale,  wild,  and  haggard,  like  men  who 
had  passed  through  a  fiery  ordeal,  now  issued  from 
32 


ft"? 


C'1^- 


n. 

i  ^ 


U  ■  r 


ftV.    i 


250 


FATE  OF  THE  FOREST  GARRISONS.      [Chap.  XDI. 


the  blockhouse,  whoso  sides  were  pierced  with  bullets 
and  scorched  with  fire.  In  spite  of  the  capitulation, 
they  were  surrounded  and  seized,  and,  having  been 
detained  for  some  time  in  the  neighborhood,  were 
sent  as  prisoners  to  Detroit,  where  Ensign  Christie 
soon  after  made  his  escape,  and  gained  the  fort  in 
safety.* 

After  Presqu'Isle  was  taken,  the  neighboring  little 
posts  of  Le  Boeuf  and  Venango  shared  its  fate,  while 
farther  southward,  at  the  forks  of  the  Ohio,  a  host 
of  Delaware  and  Shawanoe  warriors  were  gathering 
around  Fort  Pitt,  and  blood  and  havoc  reigned  along 
the  whole  frontier.  ^ 


1  Loes  of  the  Posts,  MS.    Pontiac  MS.    Christie's  Report,  MS. 


i  i      . 

.  •    1  .- 


'   ■:.>  :.>i-.i.r--  •i!^'' 


;1 


s<.i^   <■•;    :>>iFiy 


-yrJi:'      y 


<        -V 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

THE  INDIANS  CONTINUE  TO  BLOCKADE  DETROIT. 

We  return  once  more  to  Detroit  and  its  beleaguered 
garrison.  On  the  nineteenth  of  June,  a  rumor  reached 
them  that  one  of  the  vessels  had  been  seen  near  Tur- 
key Island,  some  miles  below  the  fort,  but  that,  the 
wind  failing  her,  she  had  dropped  down  with  the  cur- 
rent, to  wait  a  more  favorable  opportimity.  It  may 
be  remembered  that  this  vessel  had,  several  weeks  be- 
fore, gone  down  Lake  Erie  to  hasten  the  advance  of 
Cuyler's  expected  detachment.  Passing  these  troops 
on  her  way,  she  had  held  her  course  to  Niagara ;  and 
here  she  had  remained  until  the  return  of  Cuyler,  with 
the  remnant  of  his  men,  made  known  the  catastrophe 
that  had  befallen  him.  This  officer,  and  the  survivors 
of  his  party,  with  a  few  other  troops  sparea  from  the 
garrison  of  Niagara,  wer.  ordered  to  embark  on  board 
of  her,  and  make  the  best  of  their  way  back  to  De- 
troit. They  had  done  so,  and  now,  as  we  have  seen, 
were  almost  within  sight  of  the  fort;  but  the  critical 
part  of  the  undertaking  yet  remained.  The  river 
channel  was  in  some  places  narrow,  and  more  than 
eight  hundred  Indians  were  on  the  alert  to  intercept 
their  passage. 

For  several  days,  the  officers  at  Detroit  heard  noth- 
ing farther  of  the  vessel,  yhen,  on  the  twenty-third, 
a  great  conmiotion   was  >i.iible   among  the   Indians, 


C-: 


'•  i 


■I-*-' 


1^ 


252 


BLOCKADE  OF  DETROIT. 


fr.nxv.  XIV. 


1^^' 


I 


large  parties  of  whom  were  seen  to  pass  along  the 
outskirts  of  the  woods,  behind  the  fort.  The  cause 
of  these  movements  was  ur!  -^  own  till  evening,  when 
M.  Baby  came  in  with  iiiieliigence  that  the  vessel 
was  again  attempting  to  ascend  the  river,  and  that 
all  the  Indians  had  gone  to  attack  her.  Upon  this, 
two  cannon  were  fired,  that  those  on  board  might 
know  that  the  fort  still  held  out.  This  done,  all  re- 
mained in  much  anxiety  awaiting  the  result. 

The  schooner,  late  that  afternoon,  began  to  move 
slowly  upward,  with  a  gentle  breeze,  between  the 
main  shore  and  the  long-extended  margin  of  Fight- 
ing Island.  About  sixty  men  were  crowded  on  board, 
of  whom  only  ten  or  twelve  were  visible  on  deck, 
the  officer  having  ordered  the  rest  to  lie  hidden 
below,  in  hopes  that  the  Indians,  encouraged  by 
this  apparent  weakness,  might  make  an  open  attack. 
Just  before  reaching  the  narrowest  part  of  the 
channel,  the  wind  died  away,  and  the  anchor  was 
dropped.  Immediately  above,  and  within  gunshot  of 
the  vessel,  the  Indians  had  made  a  breastwork  of 
logs,  carefully  concealed  by  bushes,  on  the  shore  of 
Turkey  Island.  Here  they  lay  in  force,  waiting  for 
the  schooner  to  pass.  Ignorant  of  this,  but  still  cau- 
tious and  wary,  the  crew  kept  a  strict  watch  from  the 
moment  the  sun  went  down.  Hours  wore  on,  and 
nothing  'lad  broken  the  deep  repose  of  the  night. 
The  c  rent  gurgled  with  a  monotonous  sound  around 
the  bows  of  the  schooner,  and  on  either  hand  the 
wooded  shores  lay  amid  the  obscurity,  black  and  silent 
as  the  grave.  At  length,  the  sentinel  could  discern, 
in  the  distance,  various  moving  objects  upon  the  dark 
surface  of  the  water.  The  men  were  ordered  up  from 
below,   and   all   took   their   posts  in   perfect   silence. 


li- 


CHiP.  xiv.i 


ATTACK  ON  THE  SCHOONER. 


253 


The  blow  of  a  hammer  on  the  mast  was  to  be  the 
signal  to  fire.  The  Indians,  glidmg  stealthily  over 
the  water  in  their  birch  cwuoes,  had,  by  this  time, 
approached  within  a  few  rods  of  their  fancied  prize, 
when  suddenly  the  dark  side  o'  the  slumbering  ves- 
sel burst  into  a  blaze  of  c>jmon  and  musketry,  which 
illumined  tho  nij  'it  lik<    a  flush  of  lightning.     Grape 


lei 


and  musket  shot  il  .y 
stroying    several   of  * 
wounding   as   many 
consternation  to   the     '; 
surprise,  they   began    to 


..  ong  the  canoes,  de- 
ling fourteen  Indians, 
I  iving  the  rest  in 
Itccovcring  from  their 
upon  the   vessel  from 


behind  their  breastwork;  upon  which  she  weighed 
anchor,  and  dropped  down  once  more  beyond  their 
reach,  into  the  broad  river  below.  Several  days 
afterwards,  she  again  attempted  to  ascend.  This 
time,  she  met  with  better  success;  for,  though  the 
Indians  fired  at  her  constantly  from  the  shore,  no 
man  was  hurt,  and  at  length  she  left  behind  her  the 
perilous  channels  of  the  islands.  As  she  passed  the 
Wyandot  village,  she  sent  a  shower  of  grape  among 
its  yelping  inhabitants,  by  which  several  were  killed; 
and  then,  furling  her  sails,  lay  peacefully  at  anchor 
by  the  side  of  her  companion  vessel,  abreast  of  the 
fort. 

The  schooner  brought  to  the  garrison  a  much 
needed  supply  of  men,  ammunition,  and  provision. 
She  brought,  also,  the  interesting  and  important 
tidings  that  peace  was  at  length  concluded  between 
France  and  England.  The  bloody  and  momentous 
struggle  of  the  French  war,  which  had  shaken 
North  America  since  the  year  1755,  had  indeed  been 

1  Pontiac  MS. 


it  „■  I 


I  >     ■ 


f- 

^M 

1   ' 

m 

m 

I 

11 

■Si 

1 

t 
1 

1 

s^ 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


bi|28     |Z5 
>u  Uii   |2.2 


lala 


{1.25  ||.4   ||.6 

^ 

6"     

► 

Photographic 

Sciences 

CorDoration 


33  WiST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  USSO 

(716)  •73-4S03 


!    ' 


i,si  ( 


I    I 
I    I 


254 


BLOCKADE  OP  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XrV. 


virtually  closed  by  the  victory  on  the  Plains  of 
Abraham,  and  the  junction  of  the  three  British 
armies  at  Montreal.  Yet  up  to  this  time,  its  embers 
had  continued  to  bum,  till,  at  length,  peace  was  com- 
pletely established  by  formal  treaty  between  the  hos- 
tile powers.  France  resigned  her  ambitious  project  of 
empire  in  America,  and  ceded  Canada  and  the  region 
of  the  lakes  to  her  successful  rival.  By  this  treaty, 
the  Canadians  of  Detroit  were  placed  in  a  new  posi- 
tion. Hitherto  they  had  been,  as  it  were,  prisoners 
on  capitulation,  neutral  spectators  of  the  quarrel  be- 
tween their  British  conquerors  and  the  Indians;  but 
now  their  allegiance  was  transferred  from  the  crown 
of  France  to  that  of  Britain,  and  they  were  subjects 
of  the  English  king.  To  many  of  them,  the  change 
was  extremely  odious,  for  they  cordially  hated  the 
British.  They  went  about  among  the  settlers  and 
the  Indians,  declaring  that  the  pretended  news  of 
peace  was  only  an  invention  of  Major  Gladwyn; 
that  the  King  of  France  would  never  abandon  his 
children;  and  that  a  great  French  army  was  even 
then  ascending  the  St.  Lawrence,  while  another  was 
approaching  from  the  country  of  the  Illinois.*  This 
oft-repeated  falsehood  was  implicitly  believed  by  the 
Indians,  who  continued  firm  in  faith  that  theii* 
great  father  was  about  to  awake  from  his  sleep, 
and  wreak  his  vengeance  upon  the  insolent  English, 
who  had  intruded  on  his  domain. 

Pontiac  himself  clung  fast  to  this  delusive  hope; 
yet  he  was  greatly  vexed  at  the  safe  arrival  of 
the  vessel,  and  the  assistance  she  had  brought  to 
the    obstinate    defenders    of    Detroit.      He    exerted 


» 


1  MS.  Letter  —  Gladwyn  to  Amherst,  July  8. 


i^^t.f'v"v 


Chap.  XIV.]   PONTIAC'S  COUNCIL  WITH  THE  FRENCH.        255 

himself  with  fresh  zeal  to  gain  possession  of  the 
place,  and  attempted  to  terrify  Gladwyn  into  sub- 
mission. He  sent  a  message,  in  which  he  strongly- 
urged  him  to  surrender,  adding,  by  way  of  stimulus, 
that  eight  hundred  more  Ojibwas  were  every  day 
expected,  and  that,  on  their  arrival,  all  his  influence 
could  not  prevent  them  from  taking  the  scalp  of 
every  Englishman  in  the  fort.  To  this  friendly  ad- 
vice Gladwyn  returned  a  very  brief  and  contempt- 
uous answer. 

Pontiac,  having  long  been  anxious  to  gain  the 
Canadians  as  auxiliaries  in  the  war,  now  determined 
on  a  final  effort  to  eflect  his  object.  For  this  piur- 
pose,  he  sent  messages  to  the  principal  inhabitants, 
inviting  them  to  meet  him  in  council.  In  the  Ot- 
tawa camp,  there  was  a  vacant  spot,  quite  level, 
and  encircled  by  the  huts  of  the  Indians.  Here 
mats  were  spread  for  the  reception  of  the  dep- 
uties, who  soon  convened,  and  took  their  seats  in  a 
wide  ring.  One  part  was  occupied  by  the  Canar 
dians,  among  whom  were  several  whose  withered, 
leathery  features  proclaimed  them  the  patriarchs  of 
the  secluded  little  settlement.  Opposite  these  sat 
the  stem-visaged  Pontiac,  with  his  chiefs  on  either 
hand,  while  the  intervening  portions  of  the  circle 
were  filled  by  Canadians  and  Indians  promiscuously 
mingled.  Standing  on  the  outside,  and  looking  over 
the  heads  of  this  more  dignified  assemblage,  was  a 
motley  throng  of  Indians  and  Canadians,  half  breeds, 
trappers,  and  voyageurs,  ia  wild  and  picturesque, 
though  very  dirty  attire.  Conspicuous  among  them 
were  numerous  Indian  dandies,  a  large  class  in 
every  aboriginal  community,  where  they  hold  about 
the   same   relative   position    as    in    civilized    society. 


il 


i 

rin-ii 

'1 

y 

1    ; 
1 

1 

f 

r,' 

1 

'■ 

;    1 

1  1 

1 

* 

if 

::^',> 


256 


BLOCKADE  OF  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XIV. 


They  were  wrapped  in  the  gayest  blankets,  their 
necks  adorned  with  beads,  their  cheeks  daubed  with 
vermilion,  and  their  ears  hung  with  pendants.  They 
stood  sedately  looking  on,  with  evident  self-compla- 
cency, yet  ashamed  and  afraid  to  take  their  places 
among  the  aged  chiefs  and  warriors  of  repute. 

All  was  silent,  and  several  pipes  were  passing 
roimd  from  hand  to  hand,  when  Pontiac  rose,  and 
threw  down  a  war-belt  at  the  feet  of  the  Canadians. 

"My  brothers,"  he  said,  "how  long  will  you  suf- 
fer this  bad  flesh  to  remain  upon  your  lands  ?  I 
have  told  you  before,  and  I  now  tell  you  again,  that 
when  I  took  up  the  hatchet,  it  was  for  your  good. 
This  year,  the  English  must  all  perish  throughout 
Canada.  The  Master  of  Life  commands  it,  and  you, 
who  know  him  better  than  we,  wish  to  oppose  his 
will.  Until  now  I  have  said  nothing  on  this  matter. 
I  have  not  urged  you  to  take  part  with  us  in  the 
war.  It  would  have  been  enough  had  you  been  con- 
tent to  sit  quiet  on  your  mats,  looking  on,  while  we 
were  fighting  for  you.  But  you  have  not  done  so. 
'''  '1  call  yourselves  our  friends,  and  yet  you  assist 
English  with  provision,  and  go  about  as  spies 
among  our  villages.  This  must  not  continue.  You 
must  be  either  wholly  French  or  wholly  English. 
If  you  are  French,  take  up  that  war-belt,  and  lift 
the  hatchet  with  us;  but  if  you  are  English,  then 
we  declare  war  upon  you.  My  brothers,  I  know 
this  is  a  hard  thing.  We  are  all  alike  children  of 
our  great  father  the  King  of  France,  and  it  is  hjird 
to  fight  among  brethren  for  the  sake  of  dogs.  But 
there  is  no  choice.  Look  upon  the  belt,  and  let  us 
hear  your  answer.'" 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


1 1 


[Chap.  XIV. 

ets,  their 
ibed  with 
ts.  They 
If-compla- 
;ir  places 
ite. 

;    passing 
rose,  and 
Canadians, 
you  suf- 
lands '?    I 
igain,  that 
our  good, 
liroughout 
and  you, 
ppose  his 
lis  matter, 
us  in  the 
been  con- 
while  we 
t  done  so. 
you  assist 

as  spies 
lue.     You 

English, 
t,  and  lift 
'lish,  then 

I  know 
lildren  of 
it  is  hard 
logs.  But 
and  let  us 


Chap.  XIV.]    PONTIAC'S  COUNCIL  WITH  THE  FBENCH.         257 

One  of  the  Canadians,  having  suspected  the  pur- 
pose   of  Pontiac,   had    brought   with   him,   not  the 
treaty   of  peace,  but   a  copy  of  the   capitulation  of 
Montreal  with    its   dependencies,   including    Detroit. 
Pride,   or    some   other   motive,   restrained   him   from 
confessing  that  the  Canadians  were  no  longer  chil- 
dren of  the  King  of  France,  and  he  determined  to 
keep  up  the  old  delusion  that  a  French  army  was 
on  its  way  to   win  back  Canada,  and   chastise   the 
English  invaders.     He  began  his  speech  in  reply  to 
Pontiac    by   professing   great    love   for   the    Indians, 
and  a  strong  desire  to  aid  them  in  the  war.     "But, 
my  brothers,"  he  added,  holding  out  the  articles  of 
capitulation,   "  you  must  first  untie   the   knot  with 
which  our  great  father,  the  king,  has  bound  us.     In 
this  paper,  he  tells  all  his  Canadian  children  to  sit 
quiet  and  obey  the  English  until  he  comes,  because 
he  wishes   to  punish  his  enemies  himself.     "We  dare 
not  disobey  him,  for  he  would  then  be  angry  with 
us.     And   you,   my  brothers,  who   speak  of  making 
war  upon  us  if  we  do  not  do  as  you  wish,  do  you 
think    you    could   escape   his   wrath,   if  you   should 
raise   the   hatchet  against  his  French  children"?     He 
would  treat  you  as  enemies,  and  not  as  friends,  and 
you  would  have   to  fight  both  English  and  French 
at  oijLce.     Tell  us,  my  brothers,  what  can  you  reply 
to  tliisT'       '  ^  '^ 

Pontiac  for  a  moment  sat  silent,  mortified,  and 
perplexed;  but  his  purpose  was  not  destined  to  be 
wholly  defeated.  "Among  the  French,"  says  the 
writer  of  the  diary,  "were  many  infamous  charac- 
ters, who,  having  no  property,  cared  nothing  what 
became  of  them."  Those  mentioned  in  these  oppro- 
brious terms  were  a  collection  of  trappers,  voy- 
33  V* 


■C'i 


■iim 


Mil 


258 


BLOCKtVDE  OF  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XIV. 


ageurs,  and  nondescript  vagabonds  of  the  forest,  who 
were  seated  with  the  council,  or  stood  looking  on, 
variously  attired  in  greasy  shirts,  Indian  leggins,  and 
red  woollen  caps.  Not  a  few  among  them,  however, 
had  thought  proper  to  adopt  the  style  of  dress  and 
ornament  peculiar  to  the  red  men,  who  were  their 
usual  associates,  and  appeared  among  their  com- 
rades with  paint  rubbed  on  their  cheeks,  and  feath- 
ers dangling  from  their  hair.  Indeed,  they  aimed  to 
identify  themselves  'vvith  the  Indians,  a  transfonna- 
tion  by  which  they  gained  nothing;  for  these  rene- 
gade whites  were  held  in  light  esteem,  both  by  those 
of  their  own  color  and  the  savages  themselves. 
'  They  were  for  the  most  part  a  light  and  frivolous 
crew,  little  to  be  relied  on  for  energy  or  stability; 
though  among  them  were  men  of  hard  and  ruffian 
features,  the  ringleaders  and  bullies  of  the  voy- 
ageurs,  and  even  a  terror  to  the  Bourgeois^  himself 


1  This  name  is  always  applied, 
among  the  Canadians  of  the  north- 
west, to  the  conductor  of  a  trading 
party,  the  commander  in  a  trading 
fort,  or,  indeed,  to  any  person  in  a 
position  of  authority. 

Extract  from  a  Letter — Detroit, 
July  9,  1763,  {Penn.  Gaz.  No. 
1808.) 

"Judge  of  the  Conduct  of  the 
Canadians  here,  by  the  Behaviour  of 
these  few  Sacres  Bougres,  I  have 
mentioned ;  I  can  'assure  you,  with 
much  Certainty,  that  there  are  but 
very  few  in  the  Settlement  who  are 
not  engaged  with  the  Indians  in  their 
damn'a  Design;  in  short,  Monsieur 
is  at  the  Bottom  of  it ;  we  have  not 
only  convincing  Proofs  and  Circum- 
stances, but  undeniable  Proofs  of  it 
There  are  four  or  five  sensible,  hon- 
est Frenchmen  in  the  Place,  who 
have  been  of  a  great  deal  of  Service 
to  US,  in  bringing  us  Intelligence 
and  Provisions,  even  at  the  Risque 


of  their  own  Lives :  I  hope  they  will 
be  rewarded  for  their  good  Services ; 
I  hope  also  to  see  the  others  exalted 
on  High,  to  reap  the  Fruits  of  their 
Labours,  as  soon  aa  our  Army  ar- 
rives ;  the  Discoveries  we  have  made 
of  their  horrid  villianies,  are  almost 
incredible.  But  to  return  to  the 
Terras  of  Capitulation :  Pondiac  pro- 
poses that  we  should  immediately 
give  up  the  Garrison,  lay  down  our 
Arms,  as  the  French,  their  Fathers, 
were  obliged  to  do,  leave  the  Can- 
non, Magazines,  Merchants'  Goods, 
and  the  two  Vessels,  and  be  escort- 
ed in  Battoes,  by  the  Indians,  to  Ni- 
agara. The  Major  returned  Answer, 
that  the  General  had  not  sent  him 
there  to  deliver  up  the  Fort  to  In- 
dians, or  any  body  else ;  and  that  he 
would  defend  it  whilst  he  had  a 
single  man  to  fight  alongside  of  hmi. 
Upon  this,  Hostilities  recommenced, 
since  which  Time,  being  two  Months, 
the  whole  Garrison,  Officers,  Soldiers, 


•i 


*m 


I  , 


)  I 


Chap.  XIV.] 


FEAST  OF  DOGS, 


259 


It  was  one  of  these  who  now  took  up  the  war-belt, 
and  declared  that  he  and  his  comrades  were  ready  to 
raise  the  hatchet  for  Pontiac.  The  better  class  of 
Canadians  were  shocked  at  this  proceeding,  and  vainly 
protested  against  it.  Pontiac,  on  his  part,  was  much 
pleased  at  such  an  accession  to  his  forces,  and  he 
and  his  chiefs  shook  hands,  in  turn,  with  each  of 
their  new  auxiliaries.  The  council  had  been  protract- 
ed to  a  late  hour.  It  was  dark  before  the  assem- 
bly dissolved,  "so  that,"  as  the  chronicler  observes, 
"  these  new  Indians  had  no  opportunity  of  displaying 
their  exploits  that  day."  They  remained  in  the  In- 
dian camp  all  night,  being  afraid  of  the  reception 
they  might  meet  among  their  fellow-whites  in  the  set- 
tlement. The  whole  of  the  following  morning  was 
employed  in  giving  them  a  feast  of  welcome.  For 
this  entertainment  a  large  number  of  dogs  were  killed, 
and  served  up  to  the  guests;  none  of  whom,  accord- 
ing to  the  Indian  custom  on  such  formal  occasions, 
were  permitted  to  take  their  leave  imtil  they  had 
eaten  the  whole  of  the  enormous  portion  placed  be- 
fore them.  **^  ;*'**  :"■ - 
Pontiac  derived  little  advantage  from  his  Canadian 
allies,  most  of  whom,  fearing  the  resentment  of  the 
English  and  the  other  inhabitants,  fled,  before  the  war 
was  over,  to  the  country  of  the  Illinois.^  On  the  night 
succeeding  the  feast,  a  party  of  the  renegades,  joined 
by  about  an  equal  number  of  Indians,   approached 


•■t 


'  " 


Merchants  and  Servants,  have  been 
upon  the  Ramparts  every  Night,  not 
one  having  slept  in  a  House,  except 
the  Sick  and  Wounded  in  the  Hos- 
pital. 

"  Our  Fort  is  extremely  large,  con- 
sidering our  Numbers,  the  Stockade 
being  above  1000  Paces  in  Circum- 


ference; judge  what  a  Figure  we 
make  on  the  Works." 

The  writer  of  the  above  letter  is 
much  too  sweeping  and  indiscrim- 
inate in  his  denunciation  of  the 
French. 

■  Croghan,  Journal.  See  Butler, 
Hist.  Kentucky,  463. 


*ri 


260 


BLOCKADE  OF  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XIV. 


the  fort,  and  intrenched  themselves,  in  order  to  fire 
upon  the  garrison.  At  daybreak,  they  were  observed, 
the  gate  was  thrown  open,  and  a  file  of  men,  headed 
by  Lieutenant  Hay,  sallied  to  dislodge  them.  This 
was  effected  without  much  difficulty.  The  Canadians 
fled  with  such  despatch,  that  all  of  them  escaped  un- 
hurt, though  two  of  the  Indians  were  shot. 

It  happened  that  among  the  English  was  a  soldier 
who  had  been  prisoner,  for  several  years,  among  the 
Delawares,  and  who,  while  he  had  learned  to  hate 
the  whole  race,  at  the  same  time  had  acquired  many 
of  their  habits  and  practices.  He  now  ran  forward, 
and,  kneeling  on  the  body  of  one  of  the  dead  sav- 
ages, tore  away  the  scalp,  and  shook  it,  with  an  exult- 
ing cry,  towards  the  fugitives.^  This  act,  as  afterwards 
appeared,  excited  great  rage  among  the  Indians. 

Lieutenant  Hay  and  his  party,  after  their  success- 
ful sally,  had  retired  to  the  fort ;  when,  at  about  four 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  a  man  was  seen  running  to- 
wards it,  closely  pursued  by  Indians.  On  his  arriving 
within  gunshot  distance,  they  gave  over  the  chase, 
and  the  fugitive  came  panting  beneath  the  walls, 
where  a  wicket  was  flung  open  to  receive  him.  He 
proved  to  be  the  commandant  of  Sandusky,  who,  hav- 
ing, as  before  mentioned,  been  adopted  by  the  Indians, 
and  married  to  an  old  squaw,  now  seized  the  first 
opportunity  of  escaping  from  her  embraces. 

Through  him,  the  garrison  learned  the  unhappy 
tidings  that  Major  Campbell  was  killed.  This  gen- 
tleman, from  his  high  personal  character,  no  less  than 
his  merit  as  an  officer,  was  held  in  general  esteem ;  and 
his  fate  excited  a  feeling  of  anger  and  grief  among  all 


;^. 


-.»., 


1  Pontiac  MS. 


WW 
if         ^ 


'  K  !■: 


,,4-»'- 


Chap.  XIV.] 


DEATH  OP  MAJOR  CAMPBELL. 


261 


the  English  in  Detroit.  It  appeared  that  the  Indian 
killed  and  scalped,  in  the  skirmish  of  that  morning, 
was  nephew  to  Wasson,  chief  of  the  Ojibwas.  On 
hearing  of  his  death,  the  enraged  uncle  had  imme- 
diately blackened  his  face  in  sign  of  revenge,  called 
together  a  party  of  his  followers,  and  repairing  to  the 
house  of  Meloche,  where  Major  Campbell  was  kept 
prisoner,  had  seized  upon  him,  and  bound  him  fast 
to  a,  neighboring  fence,  where  they  shot  him  to  death 
with  arrows.  Others  say  that  they  tomahawked  him 
on  the  spot ;  but  all  agree  that  his  body  was  mutilat- 
ed in  a  barbarous  manner.  His  heart  is  said  to  have 
been  eaten  by  his  murderers,  to  make  them  courar 
geous,  a  practice  not  uncommon  among  Indians,  after 
killing  an  enemy  of  acknowledged  bravery.  The 
corpse  was  thrown  into  the  river,  and  afterwards 
brought  to  shore  and  buried  by  the  Canadians.  Ac- 
cording to  one  authority,  Pontiac  was  privy  to  this 
act ;  but  a  second,  equally  credible,  represents  him  as 
ignorant  of  it,  and  declares  that  "Wasson  was  com- 
pelled to  fly  to  his  own  village  at  Saginaw,  to  escape 
the  rage  of  the  oiFended  chief.^  Lieutenant  M'Dougal, 
Campbell's  fellow  in  captivity,  had  previously  found 
means  of  escaping. 

The  two  u  ui3d  schooners,  anchored  opposite  the 
fort,  were  now  become  objects  of  awe  and  aversion 
to  the  Indians.  This  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  for, 
besides  aiding  in  the  defence  of  the  place,  by  sweep- 
ing two  sides  of  it  with  their  fire,  they  often  caused 
great  terror  and  annoyance  to  the  besiegers.  Several 
times  they  had  left  their  anchorage,  and,  taking  up  a 
convenient  position,  had  battered  the  Indian  camps 

1  Gouin's  Account,  MS.    St.  Aubin's  Account,  MS. 


262 


BLOCKADE  OF  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XIV. 


^ij 


and  villages  with  no  little  effect.  Once  in  particular, 
—  and  this  was  the  first  attempt  of  the  kind,  —  Glad- 
wyn  himself,  with  several  of  his  officers,  had  embarked 
on  board  the  smaller  vessel,  while  a  fresh  breeze  was 
blowing  from  the  north-west.  The  Indians,  on  the 
banks,  stood  watching  her  as  she  tacked  from  shore 
to  shore,  and  pressed  their  hands  against  their  mouths 
ir  amazement,  thinking  that  magic  power  alone  could 
enable  her  thus  to  make  her  way  against  wind  and 
current.^  Making  a  long  reach  from  the  opposite 
shore,  she  came  on  directly  towards  the  camp  of 
Pontiac,  her  sails  swelling,  her  masts  leaning  over 
till  the  black  muzzles  of  her  gims  almost  touched 
the  river.  The  Indians  watched  her  in  astonishment. 
On  she  came,  till  their  fierce  hearts  exulted  in  the 
idea  that  she  would  run  ashore  within  their  clutches, 
when  suddenly  a  shout  of  command  was  heard  on 
board,  her  progress  was  arrested,  she  rose  upright,  and 
her  sails  flapped  and  fluttered  as  if  tearing  loose  from 
their  fastenings.  Steadily  she  came  round,  broadside 
to  the  shore;  then,  leaning  once  more  to  the  wind, 
bore  away  gallantly  Wiethe  other  tack.  She  did  not 
go  far.  The  wondering  spectators,  quite  at  a  loss  to 
understand  her  movements,  soon  heard  the  hoarse 
rattling  of  her  cable,  as  the  anchor  dragged  it  out, 
and  saw  her  fulling  her  vast  white  wings.  As  they 
looked  unsuspectingly  on,  a  puff  of  smoke  was  emitt<  d 
from  her  side;  a  loud  report  followed;  then  another 
and  another ;  and  the  balls,  rushing  over  their  heads, 
flew  through  the  midst  of  their  camp,  and  tore  wildly 
among  the  thick  forest-trees  beyond.  All  was  terror 
and  consternation.    The  startled  warriors  bounded  away 


i?iii;' 


1  Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1808. 


V? 


Chap.  XIV. 


Chap.  XIV] 


FIRE  RAFTS. 


M 


263 


on  all  sides;  the  squaws  snatched  up  their  children, 
and  fled  screaming;  and,  with  a  general  chorus  of 
yells,  the  whole  encampment  scattered  in  such  haste, 
that  little  damage  was  done,  except  knocking  to  pieces 
their  frail  cahins  of  bark.^ 

This  attack  was  followed  by  others  of  a  similar 
kind;  and  now  the  Indians  seemed  resolved  to  turn 
all  their  energies  to  the  destruction  of  the  vessel 
which  caused  them  such  annoyance.  On  the  night 
of  the  tenth  of  July,  they  sent  down  a  blazing  raft, 
formed  of  two  boats,  secured  together  with  a  rope, 
and  filled  with  pitch  pine,  birch  bark,  and  other  com- 
bustibles, which,  by  good  fortune,  missed  the  vessel, 
and  floated  down  the  stream  without  doing  injury. 
All  was  quiet  throughout  the  following  night;  but 
about  two  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  twelfth,  the 
sentinel  on  duty  saw  a  glowing  spark  of  fire  on  the 
surface  of  the  river,  at  some  distance  above.  It  grew 
larger  and  brighter;  it  rose  in  a  forked  flame,  and 
at  length  burst  forth  into  a  broad  conflagration.  In 
this  instance,  too,  fortune  favoidi  the  vessel;  for  the 
raft,  which  was  larger  than  th^ormer,  passed  down 
between  her  and  the  fort,  brightly  gilding  her  tra- 
cery of  ropes  and  spars,  lighting  up  the  old  palisades 
and  bastions  of  Detroit  with  the  clearness  of  day, 
disclosing  the  white  Canadian  farms  and  houses 
along  the  shore,  and  revealing  the  dusky  margin  of 
the  forest  behind.  It  showed,  too,  a  dark  group  of 
naked  spectators,  who  stood  on  the  bank  to  watch 
the  effect  of  their  artifice,  when  a  cannon  flashed,  a 
loud  report  broke  the  stillness,  and  before  the  smoke 
of  the  gun  had  risen,  these  curious  observers  had 

1  Pontiac  MS. 


h1 


;     •/■-■.  i4 


tiUGSi^SSBK 


I  ', 


rill 


$4 


264 


BLOCKADE  OF  DETROIT. 


[Ciup.  XIV 


vanished.  The  raft  floated  down,  its  flames  crackling 
and  glaring  wide  through  the  night,  until  it  was 
burnt  to  the  water's  edge,  and  its  last  hissing  em- 
bers were  quenched  in  the  river. 

Though  twice  defeated,  the  Indians  would  not  aban- 
don their  plan,  but,  soon  after  this  second  failure,  be- 
gan another  raft,  of  diflerent  construction  from  the 
former,  and  so  large  that  they  thought  it  certain  to 
take  effect.  Gladwyn,  on  his  part,  provided  boats 
which  were  moored  by  chains  at  some  distance  above 
the  vessels,  and  made  other  preparations  of  defence, 
so  effectual  that  the  Indians,  after  working  four  days 
upon  the  raft,  gave  over  their  undertaking  as  useless. 
About  this  time,  a  party  of  Shawanoe  and  Delaware 
Indians  arrived  at  Detroit,  and  were  received  by  the 
Wyandots  with  a  salute  of  musketry,  which  occa- 
sioned some  alarm  among  the  English,  who  knew 
nothing  of  its  cause.  They  reported  the  progress  of 
the  war  in  the  south  and  east;  and,  a  few  days 
after,  an  Abenaki,  from  Lower  Canada,  also  made 
his  appearance,  bringing  to  the  Indians  the  flattering 
falsehood  that  their  great  father,  the  King  of  France, 
was  at  that  moment  advancing  up  the  St.  Lawrence 
with  his  army.  It  may  here  be  observed,  that  the 
name  of  father,  given  to  the  Kings  of  France  and 
England,  was  a  mere  title  of  courtesy  or  policy;  for, 
in  his  haughty  independence,  the  Indian  yields  sub- 
mission to  no  man. 

It  was  now  between  two  and  three  months  since 
the  siege  began ;  and  if  one  is  disposed  to  think  slight- 
ingly of  the  warriors  whose  numbers  could  avail  so 
little  against  a  handful  of  half-starved  English  and 
provincials,  he  has  only  to  recollect,  that  where  bar- 
barism has  been  arrayed  against  civilization,  disorder 


PIP   :"      i    -:fl.i 


I  A 


CiiAP.  XIV]     ClIANGINQ  TEMPER  OF  THE  INDIANS. 


265 


against  discipline,  and  ungovemed  fury  against  con- 
siderate valor,  such  has  seldom  failed  to  be  the  result. 
At  the  siege  of  Detroit,  the  Indians  displayed  a 
high  degree  of  comparative  steadiness  and  persever- 
ance; and  their  history  cannot  furnish  another  in- 
stance of  so  large  a  force  persisting  so  long  in  the 
attack  of  a  fortified  place.  Their  good  conduct  may 
be  ascribed  to  their  deep  rage  against  the  English, 
to  their  hope  of  speedy  aid  from  the  French,  and 
to  the  controlling  spirit  of  Pontiac,  which  held  them 
to  their  work.  The  Indian  is  but  ill  qualified  for 
such  attempts,  having  too  much  caution  for  an  as- 
sault by  storm,  and  too  little  patience  for  a  block- 
ade. The  Wyandots  and  Pottawattamies  had  shown, 
from  the  beginning,  Ic  ^  zeal  than  the  other  na- 
tions; and  now,  like  children,  they  began  to  tire 
of  the  task  they  had  undertaken.  A  deputation  of 
the  Wyandots  came  to  the  fort,  and  begged  for 
peace,  which  was  granted  them;  but  when  the  Pot- 
tawattamies came  on  the  same  errand,  they  insisted, 
as  a  preliminary,  that  some  of  their  people,  who  were 
detained  prisoners  with  the  English,  should  first  be 
given  up.  Gladwyn  demanded,  on  his  part,  that  the 
English  captives  known  to  be  in  their  village  should 
be  brought  to  tin  fort,  and  three  of  them  were  ac- 
cordingly produced.  As  these  were  but  a  small  part 
of  the  whole,  the  deputies  were  sharply  rebuked  for 
their  duplicity,  and  told  to  go  back  for  the  rest. 
They  withdrew  angry  and  mortified;  but,  on  the  fol- 
lowing day,  a  fresh  deputation  of  chiefs  made  their 
appearance,  bringing  with  them  six  prisoners.  Hav- 
ing repaired  to  the  council-room,  they  were  met  by 
Gladwyn,  attended  only  by  one  or  two  officers.  The 
Indians  detained  in  the  fort  were  about  to  be  given 
34  w 


1' 


"I 


266 


BLOCKADE  OF  DETROIT. 


[Chap.  XIV. 


up,  and  a  treaty  concluded,  when  one  of  the  prison- 
ers declared  that  there  were  several  others  still  re- 
maining in  the  Pottawattamie  village.  Upon  this, 
the  conference  was  broken  off,  and  the  deputies 
ordered  instantly  to  depart.  On  being  thus  a  second 
time  defeated,  they  were  goaded  to  such  a  pitch  of 
rage,  that,  as  afterwards  became  known,  they  formed 
the  desperate  resolution  of  killing  Gladwyn  on  the 
spot,  and  then  making  their  escape  in  the  best  way 
they  could;  but,  happily,  at  that  moment  the  com- 
mandant observed  an  Ottawa  among  them,  and,  re- 
solving to  seize  him,  called  upon  the  guard  without 
to  assist  in  doing  so.  A  file  of  soldiers  entered,  and 
the  chiefs,  seeing  it  impossible  to  execute  their  de- 
sign, withdrew  from  the  fort,  with  black  and  sullen 
brows.  A  day  or  two  afterwards,  however,  they  re- 
turned with  the  rest  of  the  prisoners,  on  which 
peace  was  granted  them,  and  their  people  set  at 
liberty.  ..  .     , 


-    i., 


:';.lt-: 


-:\- 


CHAPTER    XV. 


■■C^*'^' 


THE   FIGHT    OF   BLOODY  BRIDGE. 


From  the  time  when  peace  was  concluded  with 
the  Wyandots  and  Pottawattamies  until  the  end  of 
July,  little  worthy  of  notice  took  place  at  Detroit. 
The  fort  was  still  watched  closely  by  the  Ottawas 
and  Ojibwas,  who  almost  daily  assailed  it  with  petty 
attacks.  In  the  mean  time,  unknown  to  the  gar- 
rison, a  strong  reenforcement  was  coming  to  their 
aid.  Captain  Dalzell  had  left  Niagara  with  twenty- 
two  barges,  bearing  two  hundred  and  eighty  men, 
with  several  small  cannon,  and  a  fresh  supply  of 
provision  and  ammunition.^ 

Coasting  along  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Erie, 
they  soon  reached  Presqu'Isle,  where  they  found  the 
scorched  and  battered  blockhouse  so  gallantly  de- 
fended by  Ensign  Christie,  and  saw  with  surprise 
the  mines  and  intrenchments  made  by  the   Indians 


,»* 


.3: 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Sir  J.  Amherst  to  Sir  W.  Johnson. 
"  New  York,  16th  June,  1763. 
"Sir: 

"I  am  to  thank  you  for  your  Let- 
ter of  the  Gth  Instant,  which  I  have 
this  moment  Received,  with  some 
Advices  from  Niagara,  concerning 
llie  Motions  of  the  Indians  that  Way, 
I  hey  having  attacked  a  Detachment 
under  the  Command  of  Lieut.  Cuy- 
lor  of  Hopkins's  Rangers,  who  were 
CIS  their  Route  tov/ards  the  Detroit, 


and  Obliged  him  to  Return  to  Ni- 
agara, with  (I  am  sorry  to  say)  too 
few  of  his  Men. 

"Upon  this  Intelligence,  I  have 
thought  it  Necessary  to  Dispatch 
Captain  Dalyell,  my  Aid  de  Camp, 
with  Orders  to  Carry  with  him  all 
such  Reinforcements  as  can  possibly 
be  collected,  (having,  at  the  same 
time,  a  due  Attention  to  the  Safety 
of  the  Principal  Forts,)  to  Niagara, 
and  to  proceed  to  the  -Detroit,  if 

AT J    r...! -1  T» w 

j.^t,-i;t:aaar^,  auu  JUUgvu  rruper. 


1'''  '  '  1 

'A 

11  ■    -t 


IS 


}  ':■'  I  n 


268 


THE  FIGHT   OF  BLOODY  BRIDGE. 


[CiiAP.  XV. 


in  assailing  it.^  Thence,  proceeding  o .  leir  voy- 
age, they  reached  Sandusky  on  the  iweTicy-sLxth  of 
Jidy;  and  here  they  marched  inland  to  the  neigh- 
boiing  village  of  the  Wyandots,  which  they  burnt 
to  the  ground,  at  the  same  time  destroying  the  com, 
which  this  tribe,  more  provident  than  most  of  the 
others,  had  planted  there  in  the  spring.  Dalzell 
then  steered  northward  for  the  mouth  of  the  De- 
troit, which  he  reached  on  the  evening  of  the 
twenty-eighth,  and  cautiously  ascended  imder  cover 
of  night.  "  It  was  fortunate,"  writes  Gladwjn,  "  that 
they  were  not  discovered,  in  which  case  they  must 
have  been  destroyed  or  taken,  as  the  Indians,  being 
emboldened  by  their  late  successes,  fight  much  bet- 
ter than  we  could  have  expected." 

On  the  morning  of  the  twenty-ninth,  the  whole 
country  around  Detroit  was  covered  by  a  sea  of  fog, 
the  precursor  of  a  hot  and  sultry  day;  but  at  sun- 
rise, its  surface  began  to  heave  and  toss,  and,  parting 
at  intervals,  disclosed  the  dark  and  burnished  surface 
of  the  river;  then  lightly  rolling,  fold  upon  fold, 
the  mists  melted  rapidly  away,  the  last  remnant 
clinging  sluggishly  along  the  margin  of  the  forests. 
Now,  for  the  first  time,  the  garrison  could  discern 
the  approaching  convoy.^  Still  they  remained  in 
suspense,  fearing  lest  it  might  have  met  the  fate  of 
the  former  detachment ;  but  a  salute  from  the  fort 
was  answered  by  a  swivel  from  the  boats,  and  at 
once  all  apprehension  passed  away.  The  convoy  soon 
reached  a  point  in  the  river  midway  between  the 
villages  of  the  Wyandots  and  the  Pottawattamies. 
About   a   fortnight   before,   as   we   have    seen,  these 


1  Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1811. 


9  Pontine  MS. 


Chap.  XV.) 


DALZELL  BEACHES  DETROIT. 


269 


capricious  savages  had  made  a  treaty  of  peace, 
which  they  now  thought  fit  to  break,  opening  a  hot 
fire  upon  the  boats  from  either  bank.^  It  was  an- 
swered by  swivels  and  musketry;  but  before  the 
short  engagement  was  over,  fifteen  of  the  English 
were  killed  or  wounded.  This  danger  passed,  boat 
after  boat  came  in  to  shore,  and  landed  its  men 
amid  the  cheers  of  the  garrison.  The  detachment 
was  composed  of  soldiers  from  the  55th  and  80th 
Regiments,  with  twenty  independent  rangers,  com- 
manded by  Major  Rogers;  and  as  the  barracks  in 
the  place  were  too  small  to  receive  them,  they  were 
all  quartered  upon  the  inhabitants.  -'H-vKi 

Scarcely  were  these  arrangements  made,  when 
a  great  smoke  was  seen  rising  from  the  Wyandot 
village  across  the  river,  and  the  inhabitants,  appar- 
ently in  much  consternation,  were  observed  paddling 
down  stream  with  their  household  utensils,  and  even 
their  dogs.  It  was  supposed  that  they  had  aban- 
doned and  burned  their  huts;  but  in  truth,  it  was 
only  an  artifice  of  these  Indians,  who  had  set  fire 
to  some  old  canoes  and  other  refuse  piled  in  front 
of  their  village,  after  which  the  warriors,  having 
concealed  the  women  and  children,  returned  and  lay 
in  ambush  among  the  bushes,  hoping  to  lure  some 
of  the  English  within  reach  of  their  guns.  None 
of  them,  however,  fell  into  the  snare.^ 

Captain  Dalzell  was  the  same  officer  who  was  the 
companion  of  Israel  Putnam  in  some  of  the  most 
adventurous  passages  of  that  rough  veteran's  life; 
but  more  recently  he  had  acted  as  aide-de-camp  to 
Sir  Jeflrey  Amherst.     On   the  day  of  his   arrival,  he 

1  MS.  Letter  —  Major  Rogers  to ,  Aug.  5. 


'J  n *:„,.  Tires 


w 


.'■# 


I*w«a«j^ 


let,  .loji, 


cf^ 


;i   I 


:  I  r  I     if 

■fi  i 

if. I  I         ' 


M 


t  I 


7 


//" 


270 


THE  FIGHT  OF  BLOODY  BRIDGE.         [Chap.  XV. 


had  a  conference  with  Gladwyn,  at  the  quarters  of 
the  latter,  and  strongly  insisted  that  the  time  was 
come  when  an  irrecoverable  blow  might  be  struck  at 
Pontiac.  He  requested  permission  to  march  out  on 
the  following  night,  and  attack  the  Indian  camp. 
Gladwyn,  better  acquainted  with  the  position  of 
affairs,  and  perhaps  more  cautious  by  nature,  was 
averse  to  the  attempt;  but  Dalzell  urged  his  request 
so  strenuously  that  the  commandant  yielded  to  his 
i-epresentations,  and  gave  a  tardy  consent.* 

Pontiac  had  recently  removed  his  camp  from  its 
old  position  near  the  mouth  of  Parent's  Creek,  and 
was  now  posted  several  miles  above,  behind  a  great 
marsh,  which  protected  the  Indian  huts  from  the 
cannon  of  the  vessel.  On  the  afternoon  of  the  thir- 
tieth, orders  were  issued  and  preparations  made  for 
the  meditated  attack.  Through  the  inexcusable  care- 
lessness of  some  of  the  officers,  the  design  became 
known  to  a  few  Canadians,  the  bad  result  of  which 
will  appear  in  the  sequel. 

About  two  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  thirty- 
first  of  July,  the  gates  were  thrown  open  in  silence, 
and  the  detachment,  two  hundred  and  fifty  in  niun- 
ber,  passed  noiselessly  out.  They  filed  two  deep 
along  the  road,  while  two  large  bateaux,  each  bear- 
ing a  swivel  on  the  bow,  rowed  up  the  river  abreast 
of  them.     Lieutenant  Brown  led  the  advanced  guard 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Major  Gladwyn  to  Sir  J,  Amherst 

"  Detroit,  Aug.  8th,  1763. 

"On  the  31  Bt,  Captain  Dalyell 
Requested,  as  a  particular  favor,  that 
I  would  give  him  the  Command  of  a 
Party,  in  order  to  Attempt  the  Sur- 
prizal  of  Pontiac's  Camp,  under  cover 
of  the  Night,  to  whicn  i  answered 


that  I  wa^  of  opinion  he  was  too 
much  on  his  Guard  to  Effect  it ;  he 
tlien  said  he  thought  I  had  it  in  my 
power  to  give  him  a  Stroke,  and  that 
if  I  did  not  Attempt  it  now,  he  would 
Run  off,  and  I  should  never  have 
another  Opportunity;  this  induced 
me  to  give  in  to  the  Scheme,  con- 
trary to  my  Judgement." 


Chap.  XV.] 


PLAN  OP  A  NIGHT  ATTACK. 


271 


of  twenty-five  men;  the  centre  was  commanded  by- 
Captain  Gray,  and  the  rear  by  Captain  Grant.  The 
night  was  still,  close,  and  sultry,  and  the  men 
inarched  in  light  undress.  On  their  right  was  the 
dark  and  gleaming  surface  of  the  river,  with  a  mar- 
gin of  sand  intervening,  and  on  their  left  a  succes- 
sion of  Canadian  houses,  with  bams,  orchards,  and 
cornfields,  from  whence  the  clamorous  barking  of 
watch-dogs  saluted  them  as  they  passed.  The  inhab- 
itants, roused  from  sleep,  looked  from  the  windows 
in  astonishment  and  alarm.  An  old  man  has  told 
the  writer  how,  when  a  child,  he  climbed  on  the 
roof  of  his  father's  house,  to  look  down  on  the 
glimmering  bayonets,  and  how,  long  after  the  troops 
had  passed,  their  heavy  and  measured  tramp  sounded 
from  afar,  through  the  still  night.  Thus  the  Eng- 
lish moved  forward  to  the  attack,  little  thinking  that, 
behind  houses  and  enclosures,  Indian  scouts  watched 
every  yard  of  their  progress  —  little  suspecting  that 
Pontiac,  apprised  by  the  Canadians  of  their  plan, 
had  broken  up  his  camp,  and  was  coming  against 
them  with  all  his  warriors,  armed  and  decorated  for 
battle.  '-v;c 

A  mile  and  a  half  from  the  fort.  Parent's  Creek, 
ever  since  that  night  called  Bloody  Run,  descended 
through  a  wild  and  rough  hollow,  and  entered  the 
Detroit  amid  a  growth  of  rank  grass  and  sedge. 
Only  a  few  rods  from  its  mouth,  the  road  crossed  it 
by  a  narrow  wooden  bridge,  not  existing  at  the 
present  day.  Just  beyond  this  bridge,  the  land  rose 
in  abrupt  ridges,  parallel  to  the  stream.  Along  their 
summits  were  rude  intrenchments  made  by  Pontiac 
to  protect  his  camp,  which  had  formerly  occupied 
the    ground   immediately    beyond.     Here,   too,  were 


'•■i  f.  ■ 


:f '  ' 


'  -i 


ll 


272 


THE  FIGHT  OF  BLOODY  BRIDGE.  [Chap.  XV. 


many  piles  of  firewood  belonging  to  the  Canadians, 
besides  strong  picket  fences,  enclosing  orchards  and 
gardens  connected  with  the  neighboring  houses.  Be- 
hind fences,  wood-piles,  and  intrenchments,  crouched 
an  luiknown  number  of  Indian  waniors  with  lev- 
eller^ jjuns.  They  lay  silent  as  snakes,  for  now  they 
could  hear  the  distant  tramp  of  the  approaching 
column. 

The  sky  was  overcast,  and  the  night  exceedingly 
dark.  As  the  English  drew  near  the  dangerous 
pass,  they  could  discern  the  oft-mentioned  house  of 
Meloche  upon  a  rising  ground  to  the  left,  while  in 
front  the  bridge  was  dimly  visible,  and  the  ridges 
beyond  it  seemed  like  a  wall  of  undistinguished 
blackness.  They  pushed  rapidly  forward,  not  wholly 
unsuspicious  of  danger.  The  advanced  guard  were 
half  way  over  the  bridge,  and  the  main  body  just 
entering  upon  it,  when  a  horrible  burst  of  yells  rose 
in  their  front,  and  the  Indian  guns  blazed  forth  in 
a  general  discharge.  Half  the  advanced  party  were 
shot  down ;  the  appalled  survivors  shrank  back 
aghast.  The  confusion  reached  even  the  main  body, 
and  the  whole  recoiled  together ;  but  Dalzell  raised 
his  clear  voice  above  the  din,  advanced  to  the  front, 
rallied  the  men,  and  led  them  forward  to  the  attack.' 
Again  the  Indians  poured  in  their  volley,  and  again 
the  English  hesitated;  but  Dalzell  shouted  from  the 
van,  and,  in  the  madness  of  mingled  rage  and  fear, 
they  charged  at  a  run  across  the  bridge  and  up  the 
heights  beyond.  Not  an  Indian  was  there  to  op- 
pose them.  In  vain  the  furious  soldiers  sought  their 
enemy  behind  fences  and   intrenchments.     The  active 

'-  1  Peisn.Gaz.  No.  1H11»    •^' 


i  ;;  J  ■: 


I     i 


^ 


Chap.  XV.] 


RETREAT  OF  THE  ENGLISH. 


273 


savages  had  fled;  yet  still  their  guns  flashed  thick 
through  the  gloom,  and  their  war-cry  rose  with  un- 
diminished clamor.  The  English  pushed  forward 
amid  the  pitchy  darkness,  quite  ignorant  of  their 
way,  and  soon  became  involved  in  a  maze  of  out- 
houses and  enclosures.  At  every  pause  they  mt.de, 
the  retiring  enemy  would  gather  to  renew  the  attack, 
firing  back  hotly  upon  the  front  and  flanks.  To 
advance  farther  would  be  useless,  and  the  only  alter- 
native was  to  withdraw  and  wait  for  daylight.  Cap- 
tain Grant,  with  his  company,  recrossed  the  bridge, 
and  took  up  his  station  on  the  road.  The  rest  fol- 
lowed, a  small  party  remaining  to  hold  the  enemy  in 
check  while  the  dead  and  woimded  were  placed  on 
board  the  two  bateaux,  which  had  rowed  up  to 
the  bridge  during  the  action.  This  task  was  com- 
menced amid  a  sharp  fire  from  both  sides;  and  be- 
fore it  was  completed,  heavy  volleys  were  heard  from 
the  rear,  where  Captain  Grant  was  stationed.  A 
great  force  of  Indians  had  fired  upon  him  from  the 
house  of  Meloche  and  the  neighboring  orchards. 
Grant  pushed  up  the  hill,  and  drove  them  from  the 
orchards  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet — drove  them, 
also,  from  the  house,  and,  entering  the  latter,  found 
two  Canadians  within.  These  men  told  him  that 
the  Indians  were  bent  on  cutting  off  the  English 
from  the  fort,  and  that  they  had  gone  in  great  num- 
bers to  occupy  the  houses  which  commanded  the 
road  below.^  It  was  now  evident  that  instant  retreat 
was  necessary ;  and  the  command  being  issued  to 
that  efiect,  the  men  fell  back  into  marching  order, 
and  slowly  began  their  retrograde  movement.     Grant 


C 


■H     .1 

•  ■     ■■!"  : 


1  Detafl  of  the  Action  of  the  31st  of  July.    See  Gent.  Mag.  XXXIII.  480. 

35 


\  i 


",'>■ 


274 


THE  FIGHT  OF  BLOCUi  BRIDGE.  [Cuap.  XV, 


was  now  in  the  van,  and  Dalzell  at  the  rear.  Some 
of  the  Indians  followed,  keeping  up  a  scattering  and 
distant  fire ;  and  from  time  to  time  the  rear  faced 
about,  to  throw  back  a  volley  of  musketry  at  the 
pursuers.  Having  proceeded  in  this  manner  for  half 
a  mile,  they  reached  a  point  where,  close  upon  the 
right,  were  many  bams  and  outhouses,  with  strong 
picket  fences.  Behind  these,  and  in  a  newly-dug 
cellar  close  at  hand,  lay  concealed  a  great  multitude 
of  Indians.  They  suffered  the  advanced  party  to 
pass  unmolested;  but  when  the  centre  and  rear  came 
opposite  their  ambuscade,  they  raised  a  frightful  yell, 
and  poured  a  volley  among  them.  The  men  had 
well  nigh  fallen  into  a  panic.  The  river  ran  close 
on  their  left,  and  the  only  avenue  of  escape  lay 
along  the  road  in  front.  Breaking  their  ranks,  they 
crowded  upon  one  another  in  blind  eagerness  to  es- 
cape the  storm  of  bullets;  and  but  for  the  presence 
of  Dalzell,  the  retreat  would  have  been  turned  into 
a  flight.  "The  enemy,"  writes  an  officer  who  was 
in  the  fight,  "  marked  him  for  his  extraordinary 
bravery ; "  and  he  had  already  received  two  severe 
wounds.  Yet  his  exertions  did  not  slacken  for  a 
moment.  Some  of  the  soldiers  he  rebuked,  some  he 
threatened,  and  some  he  beat  with  the  flat  of  his 
sword ;  till  at  length  order  was  partially  restored, 
and  the  fire  of  the  enemy  returned  with  effect. 
Though  it  was  near  daybreak,  the  dawn  was  ob- 
scured by  thick  fog,  and  little  could  be  seen  of  the 
Indians,  except  the  incessant  flashes  of  their  guns 
amid  the  mist,  while  hundreds  of  voices,  mingled  in 
one  appalling  yell,  confused  the  faculties  of  the  men, 
and  drowned  the  shout  of  command.  The  enemy 
had  taken  possession  of  a  house,  from  the  windows 


v> 


I  I 


(  r 


[CuAP.  XV. 

ir.  Some 
Dring  and 
rear  faced 
ry  at  the 
:  for  half 
upon  the 
th  strong 
newly-dug 
multitude 

party  to 
rear  came 
fhtful  yell, 

men   had 

ran  close 
3scape  lay 
anks,  they 
ness  to  es- 
e  presence 
Lirned  into 

•who  was 
traordinary 
two  severe 
ken  for  a 
d,  some  he 

flat  of  his 
y  restored, 
i^ith  effect, 
n  was  ob- 
leen  of  the 
their  guns 
mingled  in 
>f  the  men, 
The  enemy 
le  windows 


Chap.  XV.] 


*;>^?    DEATH  OF  DALZELL. 


■„^' 


275 


of  which  they  fired  down  upon  the  English.  Major 
Rogers,  with  some  of  his  provincial  rangers,  burst 
the  door  with  an  axe,  rushed  in,  and  expelled  them. 
Captain  Gray  was  ordered  to  dislodge  a  large  party 
from  behind  some  neighboring  fences.  He  charged 
them  with  his  company,  but  fell,  mortally  wounded, 
in  the  attempt.*  They  gave  way,  however ;  and  now, 
the  fire  of  the  Indians  being  much  diminished,  the 
retreat  was  resumed.  No  sooner  had  the  men  faced 
about,  than  the  savages  came  darting  through  the 
mist  upon  their  flank  and  rear,  cutting  down  strag- 
glers, and  scalping  the  fallen.  At  a  little  distance 
lay  a  sergeant  of  the  5dth,  helplessly  wounded,  rais- 
ing himself  on  his  hands,  and  gazing  with  a  look 
of  despair  after  his  retiring  comrades.  The  sight 
caught  the  eye  of  Dalzell.  That  gallant  soldier,  in 
the  true  spirit  of  heroism,  ran  out,  amid  the  firing, 
to  rescue  the  wounded  man,  when  a  shot  struck 
him,  and  he  fell  dead.  Few  observed  his  fate,  and 
none  durst  turn  back  to  recover  his  body.  The  de- 
tachment pressed  on,  greatly  harassed  by  the  pur-r 
suing  Indians.  Their  loss  would  have  been  much 
more  severe,  had  not  Major  Rogers  taken  possession 
of  another  house,  which  commanded  the  road,  and 
covered  the  retreat  of  the  party. 

He  entered  it  Avith  some  of  his  own  men,  while 
many  panic-stricken  regulars  broke  in  after  him,  in 
their  eagerness  to  gain  a  temporary  shelter.  The 
house  was  a  large  and  strong  one,  and  the  women 
of  the  neighborhood  had  crowded  into  the  cellar  for 
refuge.  While  some  of  the  soldiers  looked  in  blind 
terror  for  a  place  of  concealment,  others  seized  upon 

'^      '  -^V  '  Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1811. 


C'b. 


win! 


I 


■<u     '^ 


'  h 


276 


THE  FIGHT  OF  BLOODY  BRroOE.  [Chap.  XV. 


a  keg  of  whiskey  in  one  of  the  rooms,  and  quaffed 
the  liquor  with  eager  thirst,  while  others,  again, 
piled  packs  of  furs,  furniture,  and  all  else  within 
their  reach,  against  the  windows,  to  serve  as  a  bar- 
ricade. Panting  and  breathless,  their  faces  moist 
with  sweat  and  blackened  with  gunpowder,  they 
thrust  their  muskets  through  the  openings,  and  fired 
out  upon  the  whooping  assailants.  At  intervals,  a 
bullet  flew  sharply  whizzing  through  a  crevice,  strik- 
ing do>vn  a  man,  perchance,  or  rapping  harmlessly 
against  the  partitions.  Old  Campau,  the  master  of 
the  house,  stood  on  a  trap-door  to  prevent  the 
frightened  soldiers  from  seeking  shelter  among  the 
women  in  the  cellar.  A  ball  grazed  his  gray  head, 
and  buried  itself  in  the  wall,  where  a  few  years 
since  it  might  still  have  been  seen.  The  screams  of 
the  half-stifled  women  below,  the  quavering  war- 
whoops  without,  the  shouts  and  curses  of  the  sol- 
diers, the  groans  and  blaspheming  of  the  wounded 
men,  mingled  in  a  scene  of  clamorous  confusion,  and 
it  was  long  before  the  authority  of  Rogers  could 
restore  order.^     v.^v  -x  ^y-- vv^t.s.v   ■■^"^;:^  ■/    ■;•,    :;•;.. 

In  the  mean  time.  Captain  Grant,  with  his  ad- 
vanced party,  had  moved  forward  about  half  a  mile, 
where  he  found  some  orchards  and  enclosures,  by 
means  of  which  he  could  mamtain  himself  until  the 
centre  and  rear  should  arrive.  From  this  point  he 
detached  all  the  men  he  could  spare  to  occupy  the 
houses  below;  and  as  soldiers  soon  began  to  come  in 
from  the  rear,  he  was  enabled  to  reenforce  these  de- 
tachments,  until   a  complete  line   of  communication 


1  Many  particulars  of   the    fight    Williams,  Esq.   of  Detroit,  a  con- 
at  the  house   of  Campau  were  re-    ncction  of  the  Campau  family. 
lated  to  me.  on  the  snot,  bv  John  R. 


.il:-ii 


Chap.  XV]    GRANT  CONDUCTS  THE  RETREAT, 


277 


was  established  with  the  fort,  and  the  retreat  effectr 
ually  secured.  Within  an  hour,  the  whole  party  had 
arrived,  with  the  exception  of  Rogers  and  his  men, 
who  were  quite  unable  to  come  off,  being  besieged 
in  the  house  of  Campau,  by  full  two  hundred  In- 
dians. The  two  armed  bateaux  had  gone  down  to 
the  fort,  laden  with  the  dead  and  wounded.  They 
now  returned,  and,  in  obedience  to  an  order  from 
Grant,  proceeded  up  the  river  to  a  point  opposite 
Campau's  house,  where  they  opened  a  fire  of  swivels, 
which  swept  the  ground  above  and  below  it,  and 
completely  scattered  the  assailants.  Rogers  and  his 
party  now  came  out,  and  marched  down  the  road, 
to  unite  themselves  with  Grart.  The  two  bateaux 
accompanied  them  closely,  and,  by  a  constant 
fire,  restrained  the  Indians  from  making  an  attack. 
Scarcely  had  Rogers  left  the  house  at  one  door, 
when  the  enemy  entered  it  at  another,  to  obtain  the 
scalps  from  two  or  three  corpses  left  behind.  Fore- 
most of  them  all,  a  withered  old  squaw  rushed  in, 
with  a  shrill  scream,  and,  slashing  open  one  of  the 
dead  bodies  with  her  knife,  scooped  up  the  blood 
between  her  hands,  and  quaffed  it  with  a  ferocious 
ecstasy. 

Grant  resumed  his  retreat  as  soon  as  Rogers  had 
arrived,  falling  back  from  house  to  house,  and  joined 
in  succession  by  the  parties  sent  to  garrison  each. 
The  Indians,  in  great  numbers,  stood  whooping  and 
yelling,  at  a  vain  distance,  quite  unable  to  make  an 
attack,  so  well  did  Grant  choose  his  positions,  and 
so  steadily  and  coolly  conduct  the  retreat.  About 
eight  o'clock,  after  six  hours  of  marching  and  com- 
bat, the  detachment  entered  once  more  within  the 
sheltering  palisades  of  Detroit.  it    ■' . 


It 


r-f- 


] 

M 

* 

''■■'*)  I 


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r 

1 

t 

*  i! 


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278 


TIIE  FIGHT  OF  BLOODY  BRIDGE.  [Chap  XV 


In  this  action,  the  English  lost  fifty-nine  mm, 
killed  and  wounded.  The  loss  of  the  Indians  coul  ' 
not  be  uscertained,  but  it  certainly  did  not  exrpod 
fifteen  or  twenty.  At  the  beginning  of  the  figli 
their  numbers  were  probably  much  inferior  to  those 
of  the  English;  but  fresh  parties  were  continually 
joining  them,  until  seven  or  eight  hundred  warriors 
must  have  been  present. 

The  Ojibwas  and  Otj^vj  •  ily  formed  the  am- 
buscade at  the  briilgf  under  Pontiac's  command;  for 
the  Wyand«"t8  iw  »'  Pottav/attamies  came  later  to  the 
scene  of  actioi:,  crossing  the  river  in  their  canoes, 
or  passing  roimd  throug'i  the  woods  behind  the  fort, 
to  take  part  in  the  fray.^  ?-/"    in  '   '-^  f^^'    ' 

In  speaking  of  the  fight  of  Bloody  Bridge,  an 
able  writer  in  the  Annual  Register  for  the  year 
1763  observes,  with  justice,  that  although  in  Eu- 
ropean warfare  it  would  be  deemed  a  mere  skirmish, 
yet  in  a  conflict  with  the  American  savages,  it  rises 
to  the  importance  of  a  pitched  battle;  since  these 
people,  being  thinly  scattered  over  a  great  extent  of 
country,  are  accustomed  to  conduct  their  warfare  by 
detail,  and  never  take  the  field  in  any  great  force. 

The  Indians  were  greatly  elated  by  theii  success. 
Rimaers  were  sent  out  for  several  hundred  miles, 
through  the  surrounding  woods,  to  spread  tidings  of 
the  victory;  and  reenforcements  soon  began  to  come 
ill  to  swell  the  force  of  Pontiac.  "  Fresh  warriors," 
w  Tu  y  Giady  ^»*,  "arrive  almost  every  day,  and  I 
believe  that  I  shall  soon  be  besieged  by  upwards  of 


1  MS.  Letters  —  M'Donald  to  Dr.  count,  MS.    Gouin's  Account,  MS. 

Campbell,  Aug.  8.    Gage  to  Lord  St  Aubin'p  Account,  MS.    Peltier's 

Halifax,  Oct  12.    Amherst  to  Lord  Account,  MS.    Maxwell's  Account, 

Egreaiont,  Sept  3=    Meloche's  Ac-  MS.,  etc. 


:  'I  i 


Chaf.  XV.]    ATTACK  ON  THE  SCHOONER  GLADWYN. 


279 


a  thousand."  The  English,  on  thuir  part,  were  well 
prepared  for  resistance,  since  the  gai-rison  now  com- 
prisiid  more  than  three  hundred  effective  men;  and 
no  one  entertained  a  doubt  of  their  ultimate  success 
in  defending  the  place.  Day  after  day  passed  on;  a 
few  skirmisher  took  place,  and  a  few  men  were 
killed,  but  nothmg  worthy  of  noti«  occurred,  until 
the  night  of  the  fourth  of  September,  ^t  whi<  li  time 
was  achieved  one  o£  the  most  meniorabi*  f'*'at«  whicli 
the  chronicles  of  that  day  can  boast. 

The  schooner  Gladwyn,  the  smaiJf^r  ot  the  two 
armed  vessels  so  often  mentioned,  id  bf»en  sent 
down  to  Niagara  with  letters  ;  ud  dt  »atchi  -t.  She 
was  now  returning,  having  on  board  Hornt,  L  r  mas- 
ter, Jacobs,  hei  mate,  and  a  crew  of  ♦<  men,  all 
of  whom  were  provincials,  besides  six  quois  In- 
dians, supposed  0  be  friendly  to  the  ish.  On 
the  night  of  the  hird,  she  entered  the  lti\  r  Detroit; 
and  in  the  momiif?  the  six  Indians  asked  o  be  set 
on  shore,  a  request  which  was-  foolishh  granted. 
They  disappeared  in  the  woods,  and  pro  bly  re- 
ported to  Pontiac's  warriors  the  small  nih  ^crs  of 
the  crew.  The  vess(  1  stood  up  the  river  unr  night- 
fall, when,  the  wind  failing,  she  was  compelled  to 
anchor  about  nine  iriiles  below  the  fort.  Th<  men 
on  board  watched  A\ith  anxious  vigilance;  and  as 
night  came  on,  they  listened  to  every  sound  which 
broke  the  stillness,  froi  i  the  strange  cry  of  the  night- 
hawk,  wheeling  round  and  round  above  their  heads, 
to  the  bark  of  the  fcx  from  the  woods  on  shore. 
The  night  set  in  with  darkness  so  complete,  that  at 
the  distance  of  a  few  rods  nothing  could  be  dis- 
cerned. Meantime,  three  hundred  and  fifty  Indians, 
in  their  birch  canoes,  glided   silently  down  with  the 


I     ! 


280 


THE  FIGHT  OF  BLOODY  BRIDGE. 


[Chap.  XV. 


current,  and  were  close  upon  the  vessel  before  they 
were  seen.  There  was  only  time  to  fire  a  single 
cannon-shot  among  them,  before  they  were  beneath 
her  bows,  and  clambering  up  her  sides,  holding  their 
knives  clinched  fast  between  their  teeth.  The  crew 
gave  them  a  close  fire  of  musketry,  without  any 
effect;  then,  flinging  down  their  guns,  they  seized 
the  spears  and  hatchets  with  which  they  were  all 
provided,  and  met  the  assailants  with  such  furious 
energy  and  courage,  that  in  the  space  of  two  or 
three  minutes  they  had  killed  and  wounded  more 
than  twice  their  own  number.  But  the  Indians  were 
only  checked  for  a  moment.  The  master  of  the  ves- 
sel was  killed,  several  of  the  crew  were  disabled, 
and  the  assailants  were  leaping  over  the  bulwarks, 
when  Jacobs,  the  mate,  called  out  to  blow  up 
the  schooner.  This  desperate  command  saved  her 
and  her  crew.  Some  Wyandots,  who  liad  gained  the 
deck,  caught  the  meaning  of  his  words,  and  gave 
the  alarm  to  their  companions.  Instantly  every  In- 
dian leaped  overboard  in  a  panic,  and  the  whole 
were  seen  diving  and  swimming  off  in  all  di- 
rections, to  escape  the  threatened  explosion.  The 
schooner  was  cleared  of  her  assailants,  who  did  not 
dare  to  renew  the  attack;  and  on  the  following 
morning  she  sailed  for  the  fort,  which  she  reached 
without  molestation.  Six  of  her  crew  escaped  un- 
hurt. Of  the  remainder,  two  were  killed,  and  four 
seriously  wounded,  while  the  Indians  had  seven  men 
killed  upon  the  spot,  and  nearly  twenty  wounded, 
of  whom  eight  were  known  to  have  died  within  ii 
few  days  after.  As  the  whole  action  lasted  but 
a  few  minutes,  the  fierceness  of  the  struggle  is  suffi- 
cientlv  anoarent  from   the   loss   on  both  sides.     The 


■'  i 


S''' 


Chap.  XV.] 


THE  WAB  IN  THE  NORTH. 


281 


!T 


survivors  of  the  little  crew  were  afterwards  rewarded 
as  their  undaunted  bravery  deserved.' 

And  now,  taking  leave,  for  a  time,  of  the  garrison 
of  Detroit,  whose  fortunes  we  have  followed  so  long, 
we  will  turn  to  observe  the  progress  of  events  in  a 
quarter  of  the  wUdemess  yet  more  "wild  and  remote. 


1  MS.  Letter  —  Gladwyn  to  Am- 
herst, Sept.  9.  Carver,  164.  Re- 
lation of  the  Gallant  Defence  of  the 
Schooner  near  Detroit,  published  by 
order  of  General  Amherst,  in  the 
New  York  papers.  Penn.  Gaz.  No. 
1816.  MS.  Letter  —  Amherst  to 
Lord  Egremont,  Oct.  13.  St.  Au- 
bin's  Account,  MS.  Peltier's  Ac- 
count, MS. 

The  commander-in-chief  ordered  a 
medal  to  be  struck  and  presented  to 
each  of  the  men.  Jacobs,  the  mate 
of  the  schooner,  appears  to  have 
beeii  as  rash  as  he  was  brave;  for 
Captain  Carver  says,  that  several 
years  after,  when  in  command  of  the 
same  vessel,  he  was  lost,  with  all  Ids 
crew,  in  a  storm  on  Lake  Erie,  in 
consequence  of  having  obstinately 
refused  to  take  in  ballast  enough. 

As  this  affair  savors  somewhat  of 
the  marvellous,  the  following  evi- 
dence is  given  touching  the  most  re- 
markable features  of  the  story.  The 
document  was  copied  from  the  ar- 
cliives  of  London. 

Rxtract  from  "  A  Relation  of  tlie 
Gallant  Defence  made  by  the  Crew 
of  the  Schooner  on  Lake  Erie,  when 
Attacked  by  a  Large  Body  of  In- 
dians ;  as  Published  by  Order  of  Sir 
Jeffery  Amherst  in  the  New  York 
Papers." 

"The  Schooner  Sailed  from  Ni- 
agara, loaded  with  Provisions,  some 
time  in  August  last:  Her  Crew 
consisted  of  the  Master  and  Eleven 
Men,  witii  Six  Mohawk  Indians, 
who  were  Intended  for  a  particular 
Service.  She  entered  the  Detroit 
River,  on  the  3d  September ;  And  on 
the  4'i>  in  the  Morning,  the  Mohawks 


seemed  very  Desirous  of  bein^  >  n' 
on  Shore,  which  the  Master,  very  .  - 
considerately,  agreed  to.  The  Wind 
proved  contrary  all  that  Day ;  and  in 
the  Evening,  the  Vessell  being  at 
Anchor,  about  Nine  o'Clock,  the 
Boat-swain  discovered  a  Number  of 
Canoes  coming  down  the  River, 
with  about  Tliree  Hundred  and  Fifty 
Indians ;  Upon  which  the  Bow  Gun 
was  Immediately  Fired;  but  before 
the  other  Guns  could  be  brought  to 
Bear,  the  Enemy  got  under  the  Bow 
and  Stern,  in  Spite  of  the  Swivels 
&  Small  Arms,  and  Attempted  to 
Board  the  Vessell;  Whereupon  tlie 
Men  Abandoned  their  Small  Arms, 
and  took  to  their  Spears,  witli  which 
they  were  provided ;  And,  with 
Amazing  Resolution  and  Bravery, 
knocked  the  Savages  in  the  Head ; 
Killed  many ;  and  saved  the  Vessell. 
.  .  It  is  certain  Seven  of  the  Savages 
were  Killed  on  the  Spot,  and  Eight 
had  Died  of  those  that  were  Wound- 
ed, when  the  Accounts  came  away. 
The  Master  and  One  Man  were 
Killed,  and  four  Wounded,  on  Board 
the  Schooner,  and  the  other  SLx 
brought  her  Safe  to  the  Detroit." 

It  is  somewhat  singular  that  no 
mention  is  here  made  of  the  com- 
mand to  blow  up  the  vessel.  The 
most  explicit  authorities  on  thif) 
point  are  Carver,  who  obtained  his 
account  at  Detroit,  three  years  aftpr 
the  war,  and  a  letter  published  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Gazette,  No.  1816. 
This  letter  is  dated  at  Detroit,  five 
days  after  the  attack.  The  circum- 
stance is  also  mentioned  in  several 
traditional  accounts  of  the  Canadians. 


-  :  te 


.r-..^     X    ^;.  '.;•v^:f^■  :■ 


.vV  ■?■•-;,■ 


CHAPTER    XVI 


MICHILLIMACKINAC. 


Hi^V^M'^riiv 


In  the  spring  of  the  year  1763,  before  the  war 
broke  out,  several  English  traders  went  up  to  Mich- 
illimackmac,  some  adopting  the  old  route  of  the  Ot- 
tawa, and  others  that  of  Detroit  and  the  lakes. 
We  will  follo^^'  <\%  of  the  latter  on  his  adventurous 
progress.  Passii.g  the  fort  and  settlemient  of  De- 
troit, he  soon  enters  Lake  St.  Clair,  which  seems 
like  a  broad  basin  filled  to  overflowing,  while,  along 
its  far  distant  verge,  a  faint  line  of  forest  separates 
the  water  from  the  sky.  He  crosses  the  lake,  and 
his  voyageurs  next  lu'ge  his  canoe  against  the  cur- 
rent of  the  great  river  above.  At  length.  Lake  Hu- 
ron opens  before  him,  stretching  its  liquid  expanse, 
like  an  ocean,  to  the  farthest  horizon.  His  canoe 
skirts  the  eastern  shore  of  Michigan,'  where  the 
forest  rises  like  a  wall  from  the  water's  edge;  and 
as  he  advances  northward,  an  endless  line  of  stift' 
and  shaggy  fir-trees,  hung  with  long  mosses,  fringes 
the  shore  with  an  aspect  of  monotonous  desolation. 
In  the  space  of  two  or  three  weeks,  if  his  Cana- 
dians labor  well,  and  no  accident  occur,  the  trader 
approaches  the  end  of  his  voyage.  Passing  on  his 
right  the  extensive  Island  of  Bois  Blanc,  he  sees, 
nearly  in  front,  the  beautiful  Mackinaw,  rising,  witli 
its  white   cliffs   and    green   foliage,    from   the    broad 


I  f 


Chap.  XVI.] 


MICHnXIMACKINAC. 


283 


breast  of  the  waters.  He  does  not  steer  towards  it, 
for  at  that  day  the  Indians  were  its  only  tenants, 
but  keeps  along  the  main  shore  to  the  left,  while  his 
voyageurs  raise  their  song  and  chorus.  Doubling  a 
point,  he  sees  before  him  the  red  flag  of  England 
swelling  lazily  in  the  wind,  and  the  palisades  aiid 
wooden  bastions  of  Fort  Michillimackinac  standing 
close  upon  the  margin  of  the  lake.  On  the  beach, 
canoes  are  drawn  up,  and  Canadians  and  Indians  are 
idly  lounging.  A  little  beyond  the  fort  is  a  cluster 
of  the  white  Canadian  houses,  roofed  with  bark,  and 
protected  by  fences  of  strong  round  pickets.         niit 

The  trader  enters  at  the  gate,  and  sees  before  him 
an  extensive  square  area,  surrounded  by  high  pali- 
sades. Numerous  houses,  barracks,  and  other  build- 
ings form  a  smaller  square  within,  and  in  the  vacant 
space  which  they  enclose,  appear  the  red  uniforms 
of  British  soldiers,  the  gray  coats  of  Canadians,  and 
the  gaudy  Indian  blankets,  mingled  in  picturesque 
confusion,  while  a  multitude  of  squaws,  with  chil- 
dren of  every  hue,  stroll  restlessly  about  the  place. 
Such  was  Fort  Michillimackinp'*  in  1763.^  Its  name, 
which,  in  the  Algonquin  tongue,  signifies  the  Great 
Turtle,  was  first,  from  a  fancied  resemblance,  applied 
to  the  neighboring  island,  and  thence  to  the  fort. 

Though  buried  in  a  wilderness,  Michillimackinac 
was  still  of  no  recent  origin.  As  early  as  1671,  the 
Jesuits  had  established  a  mission  near  the  place,  and 
a  military  force  was  not  long  in  following ;  for,  under 
the  French  dominion,  the  priest  and  the  soldier  went 
hand  in   hand.     Neither  toil,   nor  suffering,  nor  all 


'".  f»     , 


1  This  description  is  drawn  from  the  stumps  of  the  pickets  and  the 
traditional  accounts,  aided  by  a  per-  foundations  of  the  houses  may  still 
Bonal  examination  of  the  spot,  where    be  traced. 


t    ,1 


284 


MICHILLIMACKINAC. 


I  Chap.  XVI. 


the  terrors  of  the  wilderness,  could  damp  the  zeal 
of  the  undaunted  missionary;  and  the  restless  am- 
bition of  France  was  always  on  the  alert  to  seize 
every  point  of  vantage,  and  avail  itself  of  every  means 
to  gain  ascendency  over  the  forest  tribes.  Besides 
Michillimackinac,  there  were  two  other  posts  in  this 
northern  region,  Green  Bay,  and  the  Sault  Ste.  Marie. 
Both  were  founded  at  an  early  period,  and  both  pre- 
sented the  same  characteristic  features,  a  mission- 
house,  a  fort,  and  a  cluster  of  Canadian  dwellings. 
They  had  been  originally  garrisoned  by  small  parties 
of  militia,  who,  bringing  their  families  with  them, 
settled  on  the  spot,  and  were  founders  of  these  little 
colonies.  Michillimackinac,  much  the  largest  of  the 
three,  contained  thirty  families  within  the  palisades 
of  the  fort,  and  about  as  many  more  without.  Be- 
sides its  military  value,  it  was  important  as  a  centre 
of  the  fur-trade;  for  it  was  here  that  the  traders  en- 
gaged their  men,  and  sent  out  their  goods  in  canoes, 
under  the  charge  of  subordinates,  to  the  more  distant 
regions  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  north-west. 

During  the  greater  part  of  the  year,  the  garrison 
and  the  settlers  were  completely  isolated  —  cut  off 
from  all  connection  with  the  world;  and,  indeed,  so 
great  was  the  distance,  and  so  serious  the  perils, 
which  separated  the  three  sister  posts  of  the  northern 
lakes,  that  often,  through  the  whole  Avinter,  all  inter- 
course was  stopped  between  them.' 

It  is  difficult  for  the  imagination  adequately  to 
conceive  the  extent  of  these  fresh-water  oceans,  and 
vast  regions  of  forest,  which,  at  the  date  of  our  nar- 
rative, were  the  domain  of  nature,  a  mighty  hunting 


1  MS.  Journal  of  Lieutenant  Gore!!,  commanding  at  Green  Bay,  1761=S}. 


CuAP.  XVI.] 


THE  NEIGHBOBma  TRIBES. 


285 


and  fishing  ground,  for  the  sustenance  of  a  few 
wandering  tribes.  One  might  journey  among  them 
for  days,  and  even  weeks  together,  without  behold- 
ing a  human  face.  The  Indians  near  Michillimack- 
inac  were  the  Ojibwas  and  Ottawas,  the  former  of 
whom  claimed  the  eastern  section  of  Michigan,  and 
the  latter  the  western,  their  respective  portions  be- 
ing separated  by  a  line  drawn  southward  from  the 
fort  itself^  The  principal  village  of  the  Ojibwas 
contained  about  a  hundred  warriors,  and  stood  upon 
the  Island  of  Michillimackinac,  nov/  called  Mackinaw. 
There  was  another  smaller  village  near  the  head  of 
Thunder  Bav.  The  Ottawas,  to  the  number  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  warriors,  lived  at  the  settlement  of 
L'Arbre  Croche,  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Michigan,  some 
distance  west  of  the  fort.  This  place  was  then  the 
seat  of  the  old  Jesuit  mission  of  St.  Ignace,  originally 
placed,  by  Father  Marquette,  on  the  northern  side  of 
the  straits.  Many  of  the  Ottawas  were  nominal  Cath- 
olics. They  were  all  somewhat  improved  from  their 
original  savage  condition,  living  in  log  houses,  and 
cultivating  com  and  vegetables  to  such  an  extent  as 
to  supply  the  fort  with  provision,  besides  satisfying 
their  own  wants.  The  Ojibwas,  on  the  other  hand, 
were  not  in  the  least  degree  removed  from  their  prim- 
itive barbarism.^ 

These  two  tribes,  with  most  of  the  other  neighbor- 
ing Indians,  were  strongly  hostile  to  the  English. 
Many  of  their  warriors  had  fought  against  them  in 
the  late  war,  for  France  had  summoned  allies  from 
the  farthest  corners  of  the  wilderness,  to  aid  her  in 
her  desperate  struggle.     This  feeling  of  hostility  was 

'  Carver,  Travels,  29.  derived  from  memoranda  furnished 

2  Manv  of  these  narticii|ar$  are    bv  Henry  R,  Schoolcraft,  EsQ; 


mm. 

h*v 

IHUk; 

»:• 

^ 

K 

,'  '**  ..'  -■ 

t 

:■  -<    r-' 

{. 

f5M 

1 

k 

^f 

K' 

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''  ^ 

i 

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!■   I    ill 


286 


MICHILLIMACKINAC. 


[Chap.  XVI. 


.w'mm^^     I 


excited  to  a  higher  pitch  by  the  influence  of  the 
Canadians,  who  disliked  the  English,  not  merely  as 
national  enemies,  but  also  as  rivals  in  the  fur-trade, 
and  were  extremely  jealous  of  their  intrusion  upon 
the  lakes.  The  following  incidents,  which  occurred 
in  the  autumn  of  the  year  1761,  will  illustrate  the 

state  of  feeling  which  prevailed: ^vv    .-       . 

At  that  time,  although  Michillimackinac  had  been 
surrendered,  and  the  French  garrison  removed,  no 
English  troops  had  yet  arrived  to  supply  their  place, 
and  the  Canadians  were  the  only  tenants  of  the  fort. 
An  adventurous  trader,  Alexander  Henry,  who,  with 
one  or  two  others,  was  the  pioneer  of  the  English 
fur-trade  in  this  region,  came  to  Michillimackinac  by 
the  route  of  the  Ottawa.  On  the  way,  he  was  sev- 
eral times  warned  to  turn  back,  and  assured  of  death 
if  he  proceeded,  and,  at  length,  was  compelled  for 
safety  to  assume  the  disguise  of  a  Canadian  voya- 
geur.  When  his  canoes,  laden  with  goods,  reached 
the  fort,  ha  was  very  coldly  received  by  its  inhab- 
itants, who  did  all  in  their  power  to  alarm  and  dis- 
courage him.  Soon  after  his  arrival,  he  received  the 
very  unwelcome  information,  that  a  large  number  of 
Ojibwas,  from  the  neighboring  villages,  were  coming, 
in  their  canoes,  to  call  upon  him.  Under  ordinary 
circumstances,  such  a  visitation,  though  disagreeable 
enough,  would  excite  neither  anxiety  nor  surprise; 
for  the  Indians,  when  in  their  villages,  lead  so  mo- 
notonous an  existence,  that  they  are  ready  to  snatch 
at  the  least  occasion  of  excitement,  and  the  prospect 
of  a  few  trifling  presents,  and  a  few  pipes  of  to- 
bacco, is  often  a  sufficient  inducement  for  a  journey 
of  several  days.  But  in  the  present  instance,  tliere 
was   serious   cause   of  apprehension,  since   Canadians 


I 

>.1 


Chap.  XVI.]  ADVENTURES  OF  A  TRADER. 


287 


and  Frenchmen  were  alike  hostile  to  the  solitary 
trader.  The  story  could  not  be  better  told  than  in 
his  own  graphic  and  truthful  words. 

"At  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  the  Chippewas 
(Ojibwas)  came  to  the  house,  about  sixty  in  num- 
ber, and  headed  by  Minavavana,  their  chief  They 
walked  in  single  file,  each  with  his  tomahawk  in  one 
hand  and  scalping-knife  in  the  other.  Their  bodies 
were  naked  from  the  waist  upward,  except  in  a  few 
examples,  where  blankets  were  thrown  loosely  over 
the  shoulders.  Their  faces  were  painted  with  char- 
coal, worked  up  with  grease,  their  bodies  with  white 
clay,  in  patterns  of  various  fancies.  Some  had  feath- 
ers thrust  through  their  noses,  and  their  heads  deco- 
rated with  the  same.  It  is  unnecessary  to  dwell  on 
the  sensations  with  which  I  beheld  the  approach  of 
this  uncouth,  if  not  frightful  assemblage. 

"  The  chief  entered  first,  and  the  rest  followed  with- 
out noise.  On  receiving  a  sign  from  the  former,  the 
latter  seated  themselves  on  the  floor. 

"  Minavavana  appeared  to  be  about  fifty  years  of 
age.  He  was  six  feet  in  height,  and  had  in  his 
countenance  an  indescribable  mixture  of  good  and 
evil.  Looking  steadfastly  at  me,  where  I  sat  in 
ceremony,  with  an  interpreter  on  either  hand,  and 
several  Canadians  behind  me,  he  entered,  at  the  same 
time,  into  conversation  with  Campion,  inquiring  how 
long  it  was  since  I  left  Montreal,  and  observing,  that 
the  English,  as  it  would  seem,  were  brave  men,  and 
not  afraid  of  death,  since  they  dared  to  come,  as  I 
had  done,  fearlessly  among  their  enemies. 

"The  Indians  now  gravely  smoked  their  pipes, 
while  I  inwardly  endured  the  tortures  of  suspense. 
At  length,  the  pipes  being  finished,  as  well  as  a  long 


288 


MICHILLIMACKINAC. 


[Chap.  XVI. 


pause,  by  which  they  were  succeeded,  Minavavana, 
taking  a  few  strings  of  wampum  in  his  hand,  began 
the  following  speech:  — 

"'Englishman,  it  is  to  you  that  I  speak,  and  I 
demand  your  attention. 

"♦Englishman,  you  know  that  the  French  king  is 
our  father.  He  promised  to  be  such ;  and  we,  in  re- 
turn,  promised  to  be  his  children.  This  promise  we 
have  kept.  .^5;   ;*^ijwv  s>;-v>^:' 

"'Englishman,  it  is  you  that  have  made  war  with 
this  our  father.  You  are  his  enemy;  and  how,  then, 
could  you  have  the  boldness  to  venture  among  us, 
his  children]     You  know  that  his  enemies  are  ours. 

'"Englishman,  we  are  informed  that  our  father, 
the  King  of  France,  is  old  and  infirm ;  land  that,  be- 
ing fatigued  with  making  war  upon  your  nation,  he 
is  fallen  asleep.  During  his  sleep,  you  have  taken 
advantage  of  him,  and  possessed  yourselves  of  Canada. 
But  his  nap  is  almost  at  an  end.  I  think  I  hear 
him  already  stirring,  and  inquiring  for  his  children, 
the  Indians;  and  when  he  does  awake,  what  must 
become  of  you  1     He  will  destroy  you  utterly. 

'"Englishman,  although  you  have  conquered  the 
French,  you  have  not  yet  conquered  us.  We  are 
not  your  slaves.  These  lakes,  these  woods  and  moun- 
tains, were  left  to  us  by  our  ancestors.  They  are  our 
inheritance;  and  we  wUl  part  with  them  to  none. 
Your  nation  supposes  that  wc,  like  the  white  people, 
cannot  live  without  bread,  and  pork,  and  beef!  But 
you  ought  to  know  that  He,  the  Great  Spirit  and 
Master  of  Life,  has  provided  food  for  us  in  these 
spacious  lakes,  and  on  these  woody  mountains. 

'"Englishman,  our  father,  the  King  of  France, 
employed  our   young  men  to  make  war  upon  your 


Chap.  XVI] 


SPEECH  OF  MINAVAVANA. 


I-/ 


289 


h\ 


nation.  In  this  warfare,  many  of  them  have  been 
killed;  and  it  is  "  custom  to  retaliate  until  such 
time  as  the  spirits  of  the  slain  are  satisfied.  But  the 
spirits  of  the  slain  are  to  be  satisfied  in  either  of 
two  ways;  the  first  is,  by  the  spilling  of  the  blood 
of  the  nation  by  which  they  fell ;  the  other,  by  cover- 
ing the  bodies  of  the  dead^  and  thus  allaying  the  re- 
sentment of  their  relations.  This  is  done  by  making 
presents. 

'"Englishman,  your  king  has  never  sent  us  any 
presents,  nor  entered  into  any  treaty  with  us ;  where- 
fore he  and  we  are  still  at  war;  and,  until  he  does 
these  things,  we  must  consider  that  we  have  no  other 
father  nor  friend,  among  the  white  men,  than  the 
King  of  France;  but  for  you,  we  have  taken  into 
consideration  that  you  have  ventured  your  life  among 
us,  in  the  expectation  that  we  should  not  molest 
you.  You  do  not  come  armed,  with  an  intention  to 
make  war ;  you  come  in  peace,  to  trade  with  us,  and 
supply  us  with  necessaries,  of  which  we  are  in  much 
want.  "We  shall  regard  you,  therefore,  as  a  brother; 
and  you  may  sleep  tranquilly,  without  fear  of  the 
Chippewas.  As  a  token  of  our  friendship,  we  present 
you  this  pipe  to  smoke.' 

"As  Minavavana  uttered  these  words,  an  Indian 
presented  me  with  a  pipe,  which,  after  I  had  drawn 
the  smoke  three  times,  was  carried  to  the  chief,  and 
after  him  to  every  person  in  the  room.  This  cere- 
mony ended,  the  chief  arose,  and  gave  me  his  hand, 
in  which  he  was  followed  by  all  the  rest."  * 

These  tokens  of  friendship  were  suitably  acknowl- 
edged by  the  trader,  who  made   a  formal   reply   to 


CV"; 


i 


^  Henrv.  Travels,  4.5, 


37 


290 


MICIIILLIMACKINAC. 


[Chap.  XVI. 


"*> 


Minavavana's  speech.  To  this  succeeded  a  request 
for  whiskey  on  the  part  of  the  Indians,  with  which 
Henry  unwillingly  complied;  and,  having  distributed 
several  small  additional  presents,  he  beheld,  witli 
profound  satisfaction,  the  departure  of  his  guests. 
Scarcely  had  he  ceased  to  congratulate  himself  on 
having  thus  got  rid  of  the  Ojibwas,  or,  as  he  calls 
them,  the  Chippewas,  when  a  more  formidable  inva- 
sion once  more  menaced  him  with  destruction.  Two 
hundred  L'Arbre  Croche  Ottawas  came  in  a  body 
to  the  fort,  and  summoned  Henry,  together  witli 
Goddard  and  Solomons,  two  other  traders,  who  had 
just  arrived,  to  meet  them  in  council.  Here  they 
infomted  their  startled  auditors  that  they  must  dis- 
tribute their  goods  among  the  Indiams,  adding  a 
worthless  promise  to  pay  them  in  the  spring,  and 
threatening  force  in  case  of  a  refusal.  Being  allowed 
until  the  next  morning  to  reflect  on  what  they  had 
heard,  the  traders  resolved  on  resistance,  and,  accord- 
ingly, arming  about  thirty  of  their  men  with  muskets, 
they  barricaded  themselves  in  the  house  occupied  by 
Henry,  and  kept  strict  watch  all  night.  The  Otta- 
was, however,  did  not  venture  an  attack.  On  the 
following  day,  the  Canadians,  with  pretended  sympa- 
thy, strongly  advised  compliance  ^vith  the  demand; 
but  the  three  traders  resolutely  held  out,  and  kept 
possession  of  their  stronghold  till  night,  when,  to 
their  surprise  and  joy,  the  news  arrived  that  tlie 
body  of  troops  known  to  be  on  their  way  towards 
the  fort  were,  at  that  moment,  encamped  within  a 
few  miles  of  it.  Another  night  of  watching  and  anx- 
iety succeeded ;  but  at  sunrise,  the  Ottawas  launched 
their  canoes  and  departed,  while,  immediately  after, 
the  boats   of  the   English   detachment  were   seen  to 


CuAP.  XVI] 


'■~L. 


OJlBWi\     VAR-€P'RF. 


approach  the  landing-place.  A  tUillimn  "Imac  re- 
ceived a  strong  garrison,  and  fi  a  tinn  at  least, 
the  traders  were  safe. 

Time  passed  on,  and  the  hostile  feelings  of  the 
Indians  towards  the  English  did  not  diminish.  It 
necessarily  follows,  from  the  extremely  loose  charac- 
ter of  Indian  government, — if  indeed  the  name  gov- 
ernment be  applicable  at  all,  —  that  the  separate 
members  of  the  same  tribe  have  little  political  con- 
nection^ and  are  often  united  merely  by  the  social 
tie  of  totemship.  Thus  the  Ottawas  at  L'Arbre 
Croche  were  quite  independent  of  those  at  Detroit. 
They  had  a  chief  of  their  own,  who  by  no  means 
acknowledged  the  authority  of  Pontiac,  though  the 
high  reputation  of  this  great  warrior  every  where 
attached  respect  and  influence  to  his  name.  The 
same  relations  subsisted  between  the  Ojibwas  of 
Michillimackinac  and  their  more  southern  tribesmen; 
and  the  latter  might  declare  war  and  make  peace 
without  at  all  involving  the  former. 

The  name  of  the  Ottawa  chief  at  L'Arbre  Croche 
has  not  survived  in  history  or  tradition.  The  chief 
of  the  Ojibwas,  however,  is  still  remembered  by  the 
remnants  of  his  people,  and  was  the  same  whom 
Henry  calls  Minavavana,  or,  as  the  Canadians  en- 
titled him,  by  wjiy  of  distinction,  Le  Grand  Sauteur, 
or  the  Great  Ojibwa.  He  lived  in  the  little  village 
of  Thunder  Bay,  though  his  power  was  acknowl- 
edged by  the  Indians  of  the  neighboring  islands. 
That  liis  mind  was  of  no  common  order  is  suffi- 
ciently evinced  by  his  speech  to  Henry;  but  he  had 
not  the  commanding  spirit  of  Pontiac.  His  influ- 
ence seems  not  to  have  extended  beyond  his  own 
tribe.     He  coidd  not,  or,  at  least,  he  did  not,  control 


c::^ 

««».»» 


Ml 

k». 

MMflh, 

If' 

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k 

,  "•  ■ '"! 

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t* 

%r: 

Ir  . 

''■■ 

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c 


:   r 

= 

\ 

n 

141 

^ 

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Isln^ 

1   ■;*•    ' 

m  '  1  ■    ■** 

\*-' 

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, ;     ""'* 

I 


■.mi 


292 


MICIIILLIMACKINAC. 


[Chap.  XVI, 


the  erratic  forces  of  an  Indian  community,  and  turn 
them  into  one  broad  current  of  steady  and  united 
energy.  Hence,  in  tlie  events  about  to  be  described, 
the  natural  instability  of  the  Indian  character  was 
abundantly  displayed. 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  1763,  Pontiac,  in  com- 
passing his  grand  scheme  of  hostility,  sent,  amon<,' 
the  rest,  to  the  Indians  of  Michillimackinac,  inviting 
them  to  aid  him  in  the  war.  His  messengers,  bear- 
ing in  their  hands  the  war-belt  of  black  and  purple 
s*  wampum,  appeared  before  the  assembled  warriors, 
flung  at  their  feet  a  hatchet  painted  red,  and  deliv- 
,  ered  the  speech  with  which  they  had  been  charged. 
,  i  The  warlike  auditory  answered  with  deep  ejaculations 
of  applause,  and,  taking  up  the  blood-red  hatchet, 
pledged  themselves  to  join  in  the  contest.  Before 
the  end  of  May,  news  reached  the  Ojibwas  that 
Pontiac  had  already  struck  the  English  at  Detroit. 
This  wrought  them  up  to  a  high  pitch  of  excite- 
ment and  emulation,  and  they  resolved  that  peace 
should  last  no  longer.  Their  numbers  were  at  this 
time  more  than  doubled,  by  several  bands  of  their 
wandering  people,  who  had  gathered  at  Michilli- 
mackinac, from  far  and  near,  attracted  probably  by 
rumors  of  impending  war.  Being,  perhaps,  jealous 
of  the  Ottawas,  or  willing  to  gain  all  the  glory  and 
plunder  to  themselves,  they  detennined  to  attack  the 
fort,  without  communicating  the  design  to  their 
neighbors  of  L'Arbre  Croche.      r  \     s    ■ 

At    this    time   there  were    about    thirty-five   men, 
with   their  officers,  in   garrison  at  Michillimackinac.^ 

1  This  appears  from  the  letters  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  fort,  both  sol- 
Captain  Etherington.    Henry  states  diers  and  Canadians,  in  his  enunier- 
the  number  at  ninety.    It  is  not  un-  ation 
likely  that  he  meant  to  inclndfi  all 


Chap.  XVI.] 


WARNINGS  OF  DANOKR. 


293 


Warning  of  the  tempest  that  impended  had  been 
clearly  given ;  enough,  had  it  been  heeded,  to  have 
averted  the  fatal  disaster.  Sevend  of  the  Cana- 
dians least  hostile  to  the  English  had  thrown  out 
liints  of  approaching  danger,  and  one  of  them  had 
even  told  Captain  Etherington,  the  commandant,  that 
the  Indians  had  formed  a  design  to  destroy,  not 
only  his  garrison,  but  all  the  English  on  the  lakes. 
With  a  folly,  of  which,  at  this  period,  there  were 
several  parallel  instances  among  the  British  officers 
in  America,  Etherington  not  only  turned  a  deaf  ear 
to  what  he  heard,  but  threatened  to  send  prisoner  to 
Detroit  the  next  person  who  should  disturb  the  fort 
with  such  tidings.  Henry,  the  trader,  who  was  at 
this  time  in  the  place,  had  also  seen  occasion  to  dis- 
trust the  Indians ;  but  on  communicating  his  sus- 
picions to  the  commandant,  the  latter  treated  them 
with  total  disregard.  Henry  accuses  himself  of 
shaiing  this  officer's  infatuation.  That  his  person 
was  in  danger,  had  been  plainly  intimated  to  him, 
under  the  following  curious  circumstances:  — 

An  Ojibwa  chief,  named  Wawatam,  had  conceived 
for  him  one  of  those  strong  friendly  attachments 
which  often  form  so  pleasing  a  feature  in  the  Indian 
character.  It  was  about  a  year  since  Henry  had 
first  met  with  this  man.  One  morning,  Wawatam 
had  entered  his  house,  and  placing  before  him,  on 
the  ground,  a  large  present  of  furs  and  dried  meat, 
delivered  a  speech  to  the  following  effect:  Early  in 
life,  after  the  ancient  usage  of  his  people,  he  had 
withdrawn  to  fast  and  pray  in  solitude,  that  he 
might  propitiate  the  Great  Spirit,  and  learn  the 
future  career  marked  out  for  him.  In  the  course  of 
his    dreams    and    visions    on    this    occasion,  it    was 


»  ,. 


I 
t      i.. 

\ 

% 
'   ■mi 


t    I 


294 


mCHILLIMACKINAC. 


[Chap.  XVI. 


revealed  to  him  that,  in  after  years,  he  should  meet 
a  white  man,  who  should  be  to  him  a  friend  and 
brother.  No  sooner  had  he  seen  Henry,  than  the 
irrepressible  conviction  rose  up  within  him,  that  he 
was  the  man  whom  the  Great  Spirit  had  indicated, 
and  that  the  dream  was  now  fulfilled.  Henry  re- 
plied  to   the  speech  with  suitable  acknowledgments 

/^  of  gratitude,  made  a  present  in  his  turn,  smoked  a 
pipe  with  Wawatam,  and,  as  the  latter  soon  after 
left  the   fort,  speedily  forgot   his   Indian   friend   and 

\v  brother  altogether.  Many  months  had  elapsed  since 
the  occurrence  of  this  very  characteristic  incident, 
when,  on  the  second  of  June,  Henry's  door  was 
pushed  open  without  ceremony,  and  the  dark  fig- 
ure of  Wawatam  glided  silently  in.  He  said  that 
he  was  just  return'^d  from  his  wintering  ground. 
Henry,  at  length  recullecting  him,  inquired  after  the 
success  of  his  hunt;  but  the  Indian,  without  reply- 
ing, sat  do^vn  with  a  dejected  air,  and  expressed  his 
surprise  and  regret  at  finding  his  brother  still  in  the 
fort.  He  said  that  he  was  going  on  the  next  day 
to  the  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  and  that  he  wished  Henry 
to  go  with  him.  He  then  asked  if  the  English  had 
heard  no  bad  news,  and  said  that  through  the  win- 
ter he  himself  had  been  much  disturbed  by  the 
singing  of  evil  birds.  Seeing  that  Henry  gave  little 
attention  to  what  he  said,  he  at  length  went  away 
with  a  sad  and  mournfid  face.  On  the  next  morn- 
ing, he  came  again,  together  with  his  squaw,  and, 
offering  the  trader  a  j)resent  of  dried  meat,  again 
pressed  him  to  go  with  him,  in  the  afternoon,  to  the 
Sault  Ste.  Marie.  When  Henry  demanded  his  reason 
for  such  urgency,  he  asked  if  his  brother  did  not 
know  tiiat  many  bad  Indians,  v/ho  had  never  shown 


m 


Chap.  XVI.] 


EVE  OF  TIIE  MASSACRE. 


295 


themselves  at  the  fort,  were  encamped  in  the  woods 
around  it.  To-morrow,  he  said,  they  are  coming  to 
ask  for  whiskey,  and  would  all  get  drunk,  so  that  it 
would  be  dangerous  to  remain.  Wawatam  let  fall, 
in  addition,  various  other  hints,  which,  but  for 
Henry's  imperfect  knowledge  of  the  Algonquin  lan- 
guage, could  hardly  have  failed  to  draw  his  atten- 
tion. As  it  was,  however,  his  friend's  words  were 
spoken  in  vain ;  and  at  length,  after  long  and  per- 
severing eflfbrts,  he  and  his  squaw  took  their  de- 
parture, but  not,  as  Henry  declares,  before  each  had 
let  fall  some  tears.  Among  the  Indian  women,  the 
practice  of  weeping  and  wailing  is  universal  upon 
all  occasions  of  sorrowful  emotion;  and  the  kind- 
hearted  squaw,  as  she  took  down  her  husband's 
lodge,  and  loaded  his  canoe  for  departure,  did  not 
cease  to  sob  and  moan  aloud. 

On  this  same  afternoon,  Henry  remembers  that 
the  fort  was  full  of  Indians,  moving  about  among 
the  soldiers  with  a  great  appearance  of  friendship. 
Many  of  them  came  to  his  house,  to  purchase 
knives  and  small  hatchets,  often  asking  to  see  silver 
bracelets,  and  other  ornaments,  with  the  intention, 
as  afterwards  appeared,  of  learning  their  places  of 
deposit,  in  order  the  more  easily  to  lay  hand  on 
them  at  the  moment  of  pillage.  As  the  afternoon 
drew  to  a  close,  the  visitors  qiuetly  went  away;  and 
many  of  the  unhappy  garrison  saw  for  the  last 
time  the  sun  go  down  behind  the  waters  of  Lake 
Michigan.  ^  ,.  ,,, 


■nov<av    clinvvii 


.,i^^.;^/•■' 


'  "    '      '       '■  i     \ 

:'■         .■■:';:.,:.■■    •  ,<_    ^./-^      ^^^'^v;  •  ftltf  >^ftf,:  v,.- 

.•pr-  J^ 

^     !, 

.*■•. "  ■'■■         '.  ■  ■ 

.•,..:'  -T:'V  ^;  ■J'.'A&ft!:^^^   /'.  ■^r/,!',,;;:!?:'^-;  t;/.  ^  jk^i'' 

■, »'  'if*.") 

h 

■■;.;-^^.-  '.V 

•  ■^f^i  .: 

•1 

:-.t,  :yl-  !'■ 

t    I     ,.^ 

fii 


CHAPTER    XVII."^ 


t.'f 


THE  MASSACRE. 


..f- 


;"fr*'^i.<i;^^.*^-  ^t.ig;iwj.  ;if«    >-igi*i    jr^; 


?■' ^    K' jit<> 


The  following  morning  was  warm  and  sultry.  It 
was  the  fourth  of  June,  the  birthday  of  King 
George.  The  discipline  of  the  garrison  was  relaxed, 
and  some  license  allowed  to  the  soldiers.  Encamped 
in  the  woods,  not  far  off,  were  a  large  number  of 
Ojibwas,  lately  arrived;  while  several  bands  of  the 
Sac  Indians  from  the  Eiver  Wisconsin  had  also  erect- 
ed their  lodges  in  the  vicinity.  Early  in  the  morn- 
ing, many  Ojibwas  came  to  the  fort,  inviting  officers 
and  soldiers  to  come  out  and  see  a  grand  game  of 
ball,  which  was  to  be  played  between  their  nation 
and  the  Sacs.  In  consequence,  the  place  was  soon 
deserted  by  half  its  tenants.  An  outline  of  Michilli- 
mackinac,  as  far  as  tradition  has  preserved  its  gen- 
eral features,  has  already  been  given;  and  it  is  easy 
to  conceive,  with  sufficient  accuracy,  the  appearance 
it  must  have  presented  on  this  eventful  morning. 
The  houses  and  barracks  were  so  ranged  as  to  fonii 
a  square,  enclosing  an  extensive  area,  upon  which 
their  doors  all  oixjned,  while  behind  rose  the  tall 
palisades,  forming  a  large  external  square.  The  pic- 
turesque Canadian  houses,  with  their  rude  porticoes, 
and  projecting  roofs  of  bark,  sufficiently  indicated 
the  occupations  of  their  inhabitants;  for  birch  ca- 
noes  were   lying   near  many   of   them,   and   fishing 


Chap.  XVII.] 


INDIAN  BALL  PLAY. 


297 


rn.'  ■ 


,-:/:, 


sultry.    It 

r    of    King 

vas  relaxed, 

Encamped 

number  of 
inds  of  the 
1  also  erect- 
1  the  mom- 
ting  officers 
id  game  of 
their  nation 
!e  was   soon 

of  Michilli- 
i^ed  its  gen- 
id  it  is  easy 
appearance 
ul  morning. 
.  as  to  fomi 
upon  which 
)se  the  tall 
The  pic- 
le  porticoes, 
ly  indicated 
jr  birch  ca- 

and   fishing 


nets  were  stretched  to  dry  in  the  sim.  "Women  and 
children  were  moving  about  the  doors;  knots  of 
Canadian  voyageurs  reclined  on  the  ground,  smoking 
and  conversing;  soldiers  were  lounging  listlessly  at 
the  doors  and  windows  of  the  barracks,  or  strolling 
in  a  careless  undress  about  the  area.  r?: 

Without  the  fort,  the  scene  was  of  a  very  differ- 
ent character.  The  gates  were  wide  open,  and  the 
soldiers  were  collected  in  groups  under  the  shadow 
of  the  palisades,  watching  the  Indian  ball  play. 
Most  of  them  were  without  arms,  and  mingled 
among  them  were  a  great  number  of  Canadians, 
while  a  multitude  of  Indian  squaws,  wrapped  in 
blankets,  were  conspicuous  in  the  crowd. 

Captain  Etherington  and  Lieutenant  Leslie  stood 
near  the  gate,  the  former  indulging  his  inveterate 
English  propensity;  for,  as  Henry  informs  us,  he 
had  promised  the  Ojibwas  that  he  would  bet  on 
their  side  against  the  Sacs.  Indian  chiefs  and  war- 
riors were  also  among  the  spectators,  intent,  appar- 
ently, on  watching  the  game,  but  with  thoughts,  in 
fact,  far  otherwise  employed.  -        r  '\^:w  "v   •    ;-     - 

The  plain  in  front  was  covered  by  the  ball  play- 
ers. The  game  in  which  they  were  engaged,  called 
haggattawaif  by  the  Ojibwas,  is  still,  as  it  always  has 
been,  a  favorite  with  many  Indian  tribes.  At  either 
extremity  of  the  ground,  a  tall  post  was  planted, 
marking  the  stations  of  the  rival  parties.  The  object 
of  each  was  to  defend  its  own  post,  and  drive  the 
ball  to  that  of  its  adversary.  Hundreds  of  lithe 
and  agile  figures  were  leaping  and  bounding  upon 
the  plain.  Each  was  nearly  naked,  his  loose  black 
hah-  flying  in  the  wind,  and  each  bore  in  his  hand 
a  bat  of  a  form  peculiar  to  this  game.  At  one 
38 


'^ 


■■'  t 


4-..-t' 


298 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


ff.-  i 


!M1  iMBE13liBi     ! 


moment  the  whole  were  crowded  together,  a  dense 
throng  of  combatants,  all  struggling  for  the  ball; 
at  the  next,  they  were  scattered  agam,  and  runnmg 
over  the  ground  like  hounds  in  full  cry.  Each,  in 
his  excitement,  yelled  and  shouted  at  the  height  of 
his  voice.  Rushing  and  striking,  tripping  tlieir  ad- 
versaries, or  hurling  them  to  the  ground,  they  pur- 
sued the  animating  contest  amid  the  laughter  and 
applause  of  the  spectators.  Suddenly,  from  the  midst 
of  the  multitude,  the  ball  b  ared  into  the  air,  and, 
descending  in  a  wide  curve,  fell  near  the  pickets  of 
the  fort.  This  was  no  chance  stroke.  It  was  part  of 
a  preconcerted  stratagem  to  insure  the  surprise  and 
destruction  of  the  garrison.  As  if  in  pursuit  of  the 
ball,  the  players  turned  and  came  rushing,  a  mad- 
dened and  tumultuous  throng,  towards  the  gate.  In 
a  moment  they  had  reached  it.  The  amazed  English 
had  no  time  to  think  or  act.  The  shrill  cries  of  the 
ball  players  were  changed  to  the  ferocious  war-whoop. 
The  warriors  snatched  from  the  squaws  the  hatchets, 
which  the  latter,  with  this  design,  had  concealed  be- 
neath their  blankets.  Some  of  the  Indians  assailed 
the  spectators  without,  while  others  rushed  into  the 
fjrt,  and  all  was  carnage  and  confusion.  At  the 
outset,  several  strong  hands  had  fastened  their  gripe 
upon  Ethcrington  and  Leslie,  and  led  them  away 
from  the  scene  of  massacre  towards  the  woods.' 
Within  the  area  of  the  fort,  the  men  were  slaugh- 
tered without  mercy.  But  here  the  task  of  descrip- 
tion may  well  be  resigned  to  the  simple  and  manly 
pen  of  the  trader  Henry. 

"I  did   not   go   myself   to    see    the    match   which 

•  MS.  Letter — Etlierington  to  Giadw\n,  June  j2.    See  Appendix  C. 


CuAP.XVII.]        ESCAPE  OF  ALEXANDER  HENRY. 


299 


latch   which 


;  AppunuiX  yj. 


was  now  to  be  played  without  the  fort,  because, 
there  being  a  canoe  prepared  to  depart  on  the 
following  day  for  Montreal,  I  employed  myself  in 
writing  letters  to  my  friends,  and  even  when  a  fellow- 
trader,  Mr.  Tracy,  happened  to  call  upon  me,  saying 
that  another  canoe  had  just  arrived  from  Detroit,  and 
proposing  that  I  should  go  with  him  to  the  beach, 
to  inquire  the  news,  it  so  happened  that  I  still  re- 
mained to  finish  my  letters;  promising  to  follow  Mr. 
Tracy  in  the  course  of  a  few  minutes.  Mr.  Tracy 
had  not  gone  more  than  twenty  paces  from  my  door, 
when  I  heard  an  Indian  war-cry,  and  a  noise  of  gen- 
eral confusion.  «  ,   ..t.. 

"Going  instantly  to  my  window,  I  saw  a  crowd 
of  Indians,  within  the  fort,  furiously  cutting  down 
and  scalping  every  Englishman  they  found:  in  par- 
ticular, I  witnessed  the  fate  of  Lieutenant  Jamette. 

"I  had,  in  the  room  in  which  I  was,  a  fowling- 
piece,  loaded  with  swan  shot.  This  I  immediately 
seized,  and  held  it  for  a  few  minutes,  waiting  to  hear 
the  drum  beat  to  arms.  In  this  dreadful  interval,  I 
saw  several  of  my  countrymen  fall,  and  more  than  one 
struggling  between  the  knees  of  an  Indian,  who,  hold- 
ing him  in  this  manner,  scalped  him  while  yet  living. 

"At  length,  disappointed  in  the  hope  of  seeing  re- 
sistance made  to  the  enemy,  and  sensible,  of  course, 
that  no  effort  of  my  own  unassisted  arm  could  avail 
against  four  hundred  Indians,  I  thought  only  of  seek- 
ing shelter  amid  the  slaughter  which  was  raging.  I 
observed  many  of  the  Canadian  inhabitants  of  the 
fort  calmly  looking  on,  neither  opposing  the  Indians 
nor  suffering  injury;  and  from  this  circumstance,  I 
conceived  a  hope  of  finding  security  in  their  houses. 


* 


*ii. 


■-illMSii 


300 


1  c 


THE  iL'iSSACRE. 


[Chaj.  XVII. 


"  Between  the  yard  door  of  my  own  house  and  that 
of  M.  Langlade,  my  next  neighbor,  there  was  only  a 
low  fence,  over  which  I  easily  climbed.  At  ray  en- 
trance, I  found  the  whole  family  at  the  windows, 
gazing  at  the  scene  of  blood  before  them.  I  ad- 
dressed myself  immediately  to  M.  Langlade,  begging 
that  he  would  put  me  into  some  place  of  safety,  un- 
til the  heac  of  the  affair  should  be  over;  an  act  of 
charity  by  which  he  might,  perhapD.,  preserve  me  from 
the  general  massacre;  but  while  I  uttered  my  pe- 
tition, M.  Langlade,  who  had  looked  for  a  irriment  at 
me,  turned  again  to  the  window,  shrugging  his  shoul- 
ders, and  intimating  that  he  could  do  nothing  for 
me  —  ^  Que  voudriez-vous  qiie  j'en  ferais?' 

"This  was  a  moment  for  despair;  but  the  next  a 
Pani^  woman,  a  slave  of  M.  Langlade's,  beckoned  me 
to  follow  her.  She  brought  me  to  a  door,  which  she 
opened,  desiring  me  to  enter,  and  telling  me  that  it 
led  to  the  garret,  where  I  must  go  and  conceal  my- 
self  I  joyfully  obeyed  her  directions;  and  she,  hav- 
ing followed  me  up  to  the  garret  door,  locked  it  after 
me,  and,  with  great  presence  of  mind,  took  away 
the  key. 

"This  shelter  obtained,  if  shelter  I  could  hope  to 
find  it,  I  was  naturally  anxious  to  know  what  might 
still  be  passing  without.  Through  an  aperture,  which 
afforded  me  a  view  of  the  area  of  the  fort,  I  beheld, 
in  shapes  the  foulest  and  most  terrible,  the  ferocious 


I  m  m 


I  This  name  is  commonly  written 
Paumee.  The  tribe  wlio  bore  it  lived, 
as  at  the  present  day,  upon  the  plains 
west  of  the  Mississippi.  They  were 
at  war  with  many  surrounding  na- 
tions, and,  among  the  rcwt,  with  the 


Sacs  and  Foxes,  who  often  broujjiit 
their  prisoners  to  the  French  settle- 
ments for  sale.  It  thus  happened 
that  Pawnee  slaves  were  to  be  found 
in  the  principal  families  of  Detroit 
and  Michillimackinac. 


*^ 


CHAP.XVn.]        ESCAPE  OE  ALE^iLiVNDEE  HENRY. 


301 


triumphs  of  barbarian  conquerors.  The  dead  were 
scalped  and  mangled;  the  dying  were  writhing  and 
shrieking  under  the  unsatiated  knife  and  tomahawk; 
and  from  the  bodies  of  some,  ripped  open,  their 
butchers  were  drinking  the  blood,  scooped  up  in  the 
hollow  of  joined  hands,  and  quaffed  amid  shouts  of 
rage  and  victory.  I  was  shaken  not  only  with  hor- 
ror, but  with  fear.  The  sufferings  which  I  witnessed 
I  seemed  on  the  point  of  experiencing.  No  long 
time  elapsed  before,  every  one  being  destroyed  who 
could  be  found,  there  was  a  general  cry  of  'All  is 
finished.'  At  the  same  instant,  I  heard  some  of  the 
Indians  enter  the  house  where  I  was.  m?;  ^ 

"The  garret  was  separated  from  the  room  below 
only  by  a  layer  of  single  boards,  at  once  the  flooring 
of  the  one  and  the  ceiling  of  the  other.  I  could, 
therefore,  hear  every  thing  that  passed;  and  the  In- 
dians no  sooner  came  in  than  they  inquired  whether 
or  not  any  Englishmen  were  in  the  house.  M.  Lang- 
lade replied,  that  'he  could  not  say,  he  did  not 
know  of  any,'  answers  in  which  he  did  not  exceed 
the  truth;  for  the  Pani  woman  had  not  only  hidden 
me  by  stealth,  but  kept  my  secret  and  her  own. 
M.  Langlade  was,  therefore,  as  I  presume,  as  far  from 
a  wish  to  destroy  me  as  he  was  careless  about  saving 
me,  when  he  added  to  these  answers,  that  'they 
might  examine  for  themselves,  and  would  soon  be  sat- 
isfied as  to  the  object  of  their  question.'  Saying  this, 
he  brought  them  to  the  garret  door. 

"  The  state  of  my  mind  will  be  imagined.  Arrived 
at  the  door,  some  delay  was  occasioned  by  the  ab- 
sence of  the  key;  and  a  few  moments  were  thus 
allowed  me,  in  which  to  look  around  for  a  hiding- 
place.      In   one   comer  of   the   garret   was   a   heap 


l.> 


302 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


\l 


of  those  vessels  of  birch  bark  used  in  maple  sugar 
making.  *,   , 

"  The  door  was  unlocked  and  opening,  and  the  Tn- 
dians  ascending  the  stairs,  before  I  had  completely  citpt 
into  a  small  opening  which  presented  itself  at  one  end 
of  the  heap.  An  instant  after,  four  Indians  entered  the 
room,  all  armed  with  tomahawks,  and  all  besmeared 
with  blood,  upon  every  part  of  their  bodies. 

"The  die  appeared  to  be  cast.  I  could  scarcely 
breathe;  but  I  thought  the  throbbing  of  my  heart 
occasioned  a  noise  loud  enough  to  betray  me.  The 
Indians  walked  in  every  direction  about  the  garret; 
and  one  of  them  approached  me  so  closely,  that,  at  a 
particular  moment,  had  he  put  forth  his  hand,  he  must 
have  touched  me.  Still  I  remained  undiscovered;  a 
circumstance  to  which  the  dark  color  of  my  clothes, 
and  the  want  of  light,  in  a  room  which  had  no  win- 
dow in  the  comer  in  which  I  was,  mast  have  contrib- 
uted. In  a  word,  after  taking  several  turns  in  the 
room,  during  which  they  told  M.  Langlade  how  many 
they  had  killed,  and  how  many  scalps  they  had  taken, 
they  returned  down  stairs,  and  I,  with  sensations  not 
to  be  expressed,  heard  the  door,  which  was  the  bar- 
rier between  me  and  my  fate,  locked  for  the  second 
time. 

"There  was  a  feather  bed  on  the  floor;  and  on 
this,  exhausted  as  I  was  by  the  agitation  of  my  mind, 
I  threw  myself  down  and  fell  asleep.  In  this  state 
I  remained  till  the  dusk  of  the  evening,  when  I  was 
awakened  by  a  second  opening  of  the  door.  The 
person  that  now  entered  was  M.  Langlade's  wife,  who 
was  much  surprised  at  finding  me,  but  advised  me 
not  to  be  uneasy,  observing  that  the  Indians  had 
killed  most  of  the  English,  but  that  she  honed  I 


Chap.  XVII.]       ESCAPE  OF  ALEXANDER  HENRY. 


303 


might  myself  escape.  A  shower  of  rain  having  begun 
to  fall,  she  had  come  to  stop  a  hole  in  the  roof 
On  her  going  away,  I  begged 'her  to  send  me  a  little 
water  to  drink,  which  she  did. 

"As  night  was  now  advancing,  I  continued  to  lie 
on  the  bed,  ruminating  on  my  condition,  but  imable 
to  discover  a  resource  from  which  I  could  hope  for 
life.  A  flight  to  Detroit  had  no  probable  chance  of 
success.  The  distance  from  Michillimackinac  was 
four  hundred  miles;  I  was  without  provisions,  and 
the  whole  length  of  the  road  lay  through  Indian 
countries,  countries  of  an  enemy  in  arms,  where  the 
first  man  whom  I  should  meet  would  kill  me.  To 
stay  where  I  was,  threatened  nearly  the  same  issue. 
As  before,  fatigue  of  mind,  and  not  tranquillity,  sus- 
pended my  cares,  and  procured  me  farther  sleep. 

"The  respite  which  sleep  afforded  me  during  the 
night  was  put  an  end  to  by  the  return  of  morning. 
I  was  again  on  the  rack  of  apprehension.  At  sun- 
rise, I  heard  the  family  stirring ;  and,  presently  after, 
Indian  voices,  informing  M.  Langlade  that  they  had 
not  found  my  hapless  self  among  the  dead,  and  they 
supposed  me  to  be  somewhere  concealed.  M.  Lang- 
lade appeared,  fi-om  what  followed,  to  be,  by  this 
time,  acquainted  with  the  place  of  my  retreat;  of 
which,  no  doubt,  he  had  been  informed  by  his  wife. 
The  poor  woman,  as  soon  as  the  Indians  mentioned 
me,  declared  to  her  husband,  in  the  French  tongue, 
that  he  should  no  longer  keep  me  in  his  house,  but 
deliver  me  up  to  my  pursuers;  giving  as  a  reason 
for  this  measure,  that,  should  the  Indians  discover 
his  instrumentality  in  my  concealment,  they  might 
revenge  it  on  her  children,  and  that  it  was  better 
that  I  should  die  than  thev.     M.  Langlade  resisted, 


'  'i?',, 


1         !l 


304 


TIIE   MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


at  first,  this  sentence  of  his  wife,  but  soon  suffered 
her  to  prevail,  informing  the  Indians  that  he  had 
been  told  I  was  in  his  iiouse ;  that  I  had  come  there 
without  his  knowledge,  and  that  he  would  put  me 
into  their  hands.  This  was  no  sooner  expressed  than 
he  began  to  ascend  the  stairs,  the  Indians  following 
upon  his  heels. 

"I  now  resigned  myself  to  the  fate  with  which  I 
was  menaced;  and  regarding  every  effort  at  conceal- 
ment  as  vain,  I  arose  from  the  bed,  and  presented 
myself  full  in  view  to  the  Indians,  who  were  entering 
the  room.  They  were  all  in  a  state  of  intoxication, 
and  entirely  naked,  except  about  the  middle.  One 
of  them,  named  Wenniway,  whom  I  had  previously 
known,  and  who  was  upwards  of  six  feet  in  height, 
had  his  entire  face  and  body  covered  with  charcoal 
and  grease,  only  that  a  white  spot,  of  two-  inches  in 
diameter,  encircled  either  eye.  This  man,  walking  up 
to  me,  seized  me,  with  one  hand,  by  the  collar  of 
the  coat,  while  in  the  other  he  held  a  large  carving- 
knife,  as  if  to  plunge  it  into  my  breast;  his  eyes, 
meanwhile,  were  fixed  steadfastly  on  mine.  At  length, 
after  some  seconds  of  the  most  anxious  suspense,  he 
dropped  his  arm,  saying, '  I  won't  kill  you ! '  To  this 
he  added,  that  he  had  been  frequently  engaged  in  wars 
against  the  English,  and  had  brought  away  many 
scalps  ;  that,  on  a  certain  occasion,  he  had  lost  a 
brother,  whose  name  was  Musinigon,  and  that  I  should 
be  caUed  after  him.  v        :;i     .  - 

"A  reprieve,  upon  any  terms,  placed  me  among 
the  living,  and  gave  me  back  the  sustaining  voice 
of  hope;  but  Wenniway  ordered  me  down  stairs, 
and  there  informing  me  that  I  was  to  be  taken  to 
hi 


iKii 


indeed  everv  where 


5lse.   the 


CHAP.XVn.]       ESCAPE  OF  ALEXANDER  HENRY. 


305 


Indians  were  all  mad  with  liqi\or,  douth  again  was 
threatened,  and  not  as  possible  only,  but  as  certain. 
I  mentioned  my  fears  on  this  subject  to  M.  Lang- 
lade, )  legging  him  to  represent  the  danger  to  my 
master.  M.  Langlade,  in  this  instance,  did  not 
withhold  hit'  compassion,  and  Wenniway  immediately 
consented  that  I  should  remain  where  I  was,  imtil 
he  found  another  opportunity  to  take  me  away." 

Scarcely,  however,  had  he  been  gone  an  houi*, 
when  an  Indian  came  to  the  house,  and  directed 
Henry  to  follow  him  to  the  Ojibwa  camp.  Henry 
knew  this  man,  who  was  largely  in  his  debt,  and 
some  time  before,  on  the  trader's  asking  liim  for  pay- 
ment, the  Indian  had  declared,  in  a  significant  tone, 
that  he  would  pay  him  soon.  There  seemed  at  pres- 
ent good  ground  to  suspect  his  intention;  but,  havinp^ 
no  choice,  Henry  was  obhged  to  follow  him.  The 
Indian  led  the  way  out  of  the  gate;  but,  instead  of 
going  towards  the  camp,  he  moved  with  a  quick 
step  in  the  direction  of  the  bushes  and  sand-hills 
behind  the  fort.  At  this,  Henry's  suspicions  were 
confirmed.  He  refused  to  proceed  farther,  and 
plainly  told  his  conductor  that  he  believed  he  meant 
to  kUl  him.  The  Indian  coolly  replied,  that  he  was 
quite  right  in  thinking  so,  and  at  the  same  time-, 
seizing  the  prisoner  by  the  arm,  raised  his  knife  to 
strike  him  in  the  breast.  Henry  parried  the  blow, 
flung  the  Indian  from  him,  and  ran  for  his  life. 
He  gained  the  gate  of  the  fort,  his  enemy  close  at 
his  heels,  and,  seeing  Wenniway  standing  in  the 
centre  of  the  area,  called  upon  him  foi  protection. 
The  chief  ordered  the  Indian  to  desist;  but  the  lat- 
ter, who  was  foaming  at  the  mouth  with  rage,  still 
continued  to  pursue  Henrj',  vainly  striking  at  him 
39  z* 


!;:j?  ' 


'™F 


'I 


mil 


m 


306 


THE  MASSACBE. 


[Cnip.  XVII. 


with  his  knife.  Seeing  the  door  of  Langlade's  house 
wide  open,  the  trader  darted  in,  and  at  length  found 
himself  in  safety.  He  retired  once  more  to  his  gar- 
ret, and  lay  down,  feeling,  as  he  declares,  a  sort  of 
conviction  that  no  Indian  had  power  to  harm  him. 

This  confidence  was  somewhat  shaken  when,  early 
in  the  night,  he  was  startled  from  sleep  by  the 
opening  of  the  door.  A  light  gleamed  in  upon  him, 
and  he  was  summoned  to  descend.  He  did  so,  when, 
to  his  surprise  and  joy,  he  found,  in  the  room  be- 
low, Captain  Etherington,  Lieutenant  Leslie,  and  Mr. 
Bostwick,  a  trader,  together  with  Father  Jonois,  the 
Jesuit  priest  from  L'Arbre  Croche.  The  Indians 
were  bent  on  enjoying  that  night  a  grand  debauch 
upon  the  liquor  they  had  seized;  and  the  chiefs, 
well  knowing  the  extreme  danger  to  which  the  pris- 
oners would  be  exposed  during  these  revels,  had 
conveyed  them  all  into  the  fort,  and  placed  them  in 
charge  of  the  Canadians.  ' 

Including  officers,  soldiers,  and  traders,  they 
amounted  to  about  twenty  men,  this  handful  being 
all  that  had  escaped  the  massacre.     «,? 

Wten  Henry  entered  the  room,  he  found  his 
three  companions  in  misfortune  engagtxl  in  earnest 
debate.  These  men  had  supped  full  of  horrors;  yet 
they  were  almost  on  the  point  of  risking  a  renewal 
of  the  bloodshed  from  which  thoy  had  just  escaped. 
llie  temptation  was  a  strong  one.  The  fort  was 
this  evening  actually  in  the  hands  of  the  white  men. 
The  Indians,  with  their  ordinary  recklessness  and 
improvidence,  had  neglected  even  to  place  a  guard 
witliin  the  palisades.  They  were  now,  one  and  all, 
in  their  camp,  mad  with  liquor,  and  the  fort  was 
occupied    bv    twentv    Englishmen,    and    about   three 


Chap.  XVn.] 


ADVENTURES  OF  IIENIlY. 


307 


hundred  Canadians,  principally  voyogcurs.  To  close 
the  gates,  and  set  the  Indians  at  defiance,  seemed  no 
very  difficult  matter.  It  might  have  been  attempted, 
but  for  the  dissuasions  of  the  Jesuit,  who  had  acted 
throughout  the  part  of  a  true  friend  of  humanity, 
and  who  now  strongly  represented  the  probability 
that  the  Canadians  would  prove  treacherous,  and  the 
certainty  that  a  failure  would  involve  destruction  to 
every  Englishman  in  the  place.  The  idea  was  there- 
fore abandoned,  and  Captain  Etherington,  with  his 
companions,  that  night  shared  Henry's  garret,  where 
they  passed  the  time  in  condoling  with  each  other 
on  their  common  misfortune. 

A  party  of  Indians  came  to  the  house  in  the 
morning,  and  ordered  Henry  to  follow  them  out. 
The  weather  had  changed,  and  a  cold  storm  had  set 
in.  In  the  dreary  and  forlorn  area  of  the  fort  were 
a  few  of  the  Indian  conquerors,  though  the  main 
body  were  still  in  theh*  cimp,  not  yet  recovered  from 
the  effects  of  their  last  night's  carouse.  Henry's 
conductors  led  him  to  a  house,  where,  in  a  room 
almost  dark,  he  saw  two  traders  and  a  soldier  im- 
prisoned. They  were  released,  and  directed  to  follow 
the  party.  The  whole  then  proceeded  together  to 
the  lake  shore,  where  they  were  to  embark  for  the 
Isles  du  Castor.  A  chilling  wind  blew  strongly 
from  the  north-east,  and  the  lake  was  covered  with 
mists,  and  tossing  angrily.  Henry  stood  shivering 
on  tho  l)each,  with  no  other  upper  garment  than  a 
shirt,  drenched  with  the  cold  rain.  He  asked  Lang- 
lade, who  was  near  him,  for  a  blanket,  which  the 
latter,  with  cold-blooded  inhumanity,  refused  to  fur- 
nish unless  security  was  given  for  payment.  Another 
Canadian  proved  more  merciful,  and  Henry  received 


I  I 


308 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVll. 


a  covering  from  the  weather.  With  his  three  com- 
panions, guarded  by  seven  Indians,  he  embarked  in 
the  canoe,  the  soldier  being  tied  by  his  neck  to  one 
of  the  cross-bars  of  the  vessel.  The  thick  mists 
and  the  tempestuous  weather  compelled  them  to 
keep  along  the  shore,  close  beneath  the  wet  drip- 
ping forests.  In  this  manner  they  had  proceeded 
about  eighteen  miles,  and  were  approaching  L'Arbre 
Croche,  when  an  Ottawa  Indian  came  out  of  the 
woods,  and  called  to  them  from  the  beach,  inquiring 
the  news,  and  asking  who  were  their  prisoners. 
Some  conversation  followed,  in  the  course  of  which 
the  canoe  approached  the  shore,  where  the  water 
was  quite  shallow.  All  at  once,  a  loud  yell  was 
heard,  and  a  hundred  Ottawas,  rising  from  among 
the  trees  and  bushes,  rushed  into  the  water,  and 
seized  upon  the  canoe  and  prisoners.  The  aston- 
ished Ojibwas  remonstrated  in  vain.  The  four  Eng- 
lishmen were  taken  from  them,  and  led  in  safety  to 
the  shore.  Good  will  to  the  prisoners,  however,  had 
by  no  means  prompted  the  Ottawas  to  this  very  un- 
expected proceeding.  They  were  jealous  and  angry 
that  the  Ojibwas  should  have  taken  the  fort  without 
giving  them  an  opportunity  to  share  in  the  plunder; 
and  they  now  chose  this  summary  mode  of  asserting 
their  rights. 

The  chiefs,  however,  shook  Henry  and  his  coni- 
panions  by  the  hand,  professing  great  good  will,  as- 
suring them,  at  the  same  time,  that  the  Ojibwas 
were  carrying  them  to  the  Isles  du  Castor  merely 
to  kill  and  eat  them.  The  four  prisoners,  the  sport 
of  so  many  changing  fortunes,  soon  found  themselves 
embarked  in  an  Ottawa  canoe,  and  on  their  way 
back  to  Michillimackinac.     Thcv  were  not  alone.     A 


[Chap.  XVll. 

;hree  com- 
barked  in 
!ck  to  one 
lick  mists 
them    to 
wet  drip- 
proceeded 
ig  L'Arbre 
3ut  of  the 
L,  inquiring 
prisoners. 
B  of  which 
the   water 
i   yell  was 
rom  among 
water,  and 
The   aston- 
j  four  Eng- 
in  safety  to 
owever,  had 
lis  very  un- 
and  angry 
fort  without 
he  plunder; 
of  asserting 

d  his  colli 
Dod  will,  as- 
the  Ojibwas 
istor  merely 
rs,  the  sport 
d  themselves 
theu-  way 
ot  alone.     A 


CHAP.XVn.]      QUARRELS  OF  THE  CONQUERORS. 


309 


flotilla  of  canoes  accompanied  them,  bearing  a  great 
number  of  Ottawa  warriors;  and  before  the  day  was 
over,  the  whole  had  arrived  at  the  fort.  At  this 
time,  the  principal  Ojibwa  encampment  was  near  the 
woods,  in  full  sight  of  the  landing-place.  Its  occu- 
pants, astonished  at  this  singular  movement  on  the 
part  of  their  rivals,  stood  looking  on  in  silent 
amazement,  while  the  Ottawa  warriors,  well  armed, 
filed  into  the  fort,  and  took  possession  of  it. 

This  conduct  is  not  difficult  to  explain,  when  we 
take  into  consideration  the  peculiarities  of  the  In- 
dian character.  Pride  and  jealousy  are  al\\uys  strong 
and  active  elements  in  it.  The  Ottawas  deemed 
themselves  grossly  insulted  because  the  Ojibwas  had 
undertaken  an  enterprise  of  such  importance  with- 
out consulting  them,  or  asking  their  assistance.  It 
may  be  added,  that  the  Indians  of  L'Arbre  Croche 
were  somewhat  less  hostile  to  the  English  than  the 
neighboring  tribes ;  for  the  great  influence  of  the 
priest  Jonois  seems  always  to  have  been  exerted  on 
the  side  of  peace  and  friendship. 

The  English  prisoners  looked  upon  the  new  comers 
as  champions  and  protectors,  and  conceived  hopes 
from  their  interference  not  destined  to  be  fully  real- 
ized. On  the  morning  after  their  arrival,  the  Ojibwa 
chiefs  invited  the  principal  men  of  the  Ottawas  to 
hold  a  council  with  them  in  a  building  within  the 
fort.  They  placed  upon  the  floor  a  valuable  present 
of  goods,  which  were  part  of  th«^  plunder  they  had 
taken ;  and  their  great  war-chief,  Minavavana,  who 
had  conducted  the  attack,  rose  and  addressed  the 
Ottawas. 

Their  conduct,  he  said,  had  greatly  surprised  him. 
They  had  betrayed  the  common  cause,  and  opposed 


'•♦i^'ifc 


»»  -: 


r>. 


310 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVH, 


the  will  of  the  Great  Spirit,  who  had  decreed  that 
every  Englishman  must  die.  Excepting  them,  all  the 
Indians  had  raised  the  hatchet.  Pontiac  had  taken 
Detroit,  and  every  other  .tort  had  also  been  destroyed. 
The  English  were  meeting  with  destruction  through- 
out the  whole  world,  and  the  King  of  France  was 
awakened  from  his  sleep.  He  exhorted  them,  in 
conclusion,  no  longer  to  espouse  the  cause  of  the 
English,  but,  like  their  brethren,  to  lift  the  hatchet 
against  them. 

When  Minavavana  had  concluded  his  speech,  the 
council  adjourned  until  the  next  day;  a  custom  com- 
mon among  Indians,  in  order  that  the  auditors  may 
have  time  to  ponder  with  due  deliberation  upon 
what  they  have  heard.  At  the  next  meeting,  the 
Ottawas  expressed  a  readi'^'^ss  to  concur  with  the 
views  of  the  Ojibwas.  Th^  ;e  difference  between 
the  two  tribes  was  at  iwi^^ai  amicably  adjusted. 
The  Ottawas  returned  to  the  Ojibwas  some  of  the 
prisoners  whom  they  had  taken  from  them,  still, 
however,  retaining  the  officers  and  several  of  the 
soldiers.  These  they  soon  after  carried  to  L'Arbre 
Croche,  where  they  were  treated  with  kindness,  prob- 
ably owing  to  the  influence  of  Father  Jonois.*  The 
priest  went  down  to  Detroit  with  a  letter  from  Cap- 
tain Etherington,  acquainting  Major  Gladwyn  with 
the  loss  of  Michillimackinac,  and  entreating  that  a 
force  might  be  sent  immediately  to  his  aid.  The 
letter,  as  we  have  seen,  was  safely  delivered;  but 
Gladwyn  was,  of  course,  unable  to  render  the  re- 
quired assistance. 

Though   the  Ottawas   and   Ojibwas  had   come   to 


MS.  Letter — Etherington  to  Gladwyn,  June  28. 


HAP.  xvn. 

;ed  that 
,  all  the 
d  taken 
estroyed. 
through- 
mce  was 
them,  in 
s  of  the 
!  hatchet 

eech,  the 
torn  com- 
itors  may 
ion   upon 
jting,  the 
with  the 
}  between 
I  adjusted, 
le  of  the 
lem,   still, 
il   of   the 
)  L'Arbre 
less,  prob- 
ois.^    The 
from  Cap- 
wyn  with 
ng  that  a 
aid.     The 
rered;    but 
V    the   re- 
come   to 

18.     '■■ 


Chap.  XVn.]      TREATMENT  OF  THF.  PRISONERS. 


311 


terms,  they  still  looked  on  each  other  with  distrust, 
and  it  is  said  that  the  former  never  forgot  the  slight 
that  had  been  put  upon  them.  The  Ojibwas  took 
the  prisoners  who  had  been  returned  to  them  from 
the  fort,  and  carried  them  to  one  of  their  small  vil- 
lages, which  stood  near  the  shore,  at  no  great  dis- 
tance to  the  soath-east.  Among  the  other  lodges 
was  a  large  one,  of  the  kind  often  seen  in  Indian 
villages,  erected  for  use  on  public  occasions,  such 
as  dances,  feasts,  or  councils.  It  was  now  to  serve 
as  a  prison.  The  soldiers  were  bound  together,  two 
and  two,  and  farther  secured  by  long  ropes  tied 
round  their  necks,  and  fastened  to  the  pole  which 
supported  the  lodge  in  the  centre.  Henry  and  the 
other  traders  escaped  this  rigorous  treatment.  The 
spacious  lodge  was  soon  fiUed  with  Indians,  who 
came  to  look  at  their  captives,  and  gratify  them- 
selves by  deriding  and  jeering  at  them.  At  the 
head  of  the  lodge  sat  the  great  war-chief  Minava- 
vana,  side  by  side  with  Henry's  master,  Wenniway. 
Things  had  remained  for  some  time  in  this  position, 
when  Henry  observed  an  Indian  stooping  to  enter 
at  the  low  aperture  which  served  for  a  door,  and,  to 
his  great  joy,  recognized  his  friend  and  brother,  Wa- 
watam,  whom  he  had  last  seen  on  the  day  before 
the  massacre.  Wawatam  said  nothing;  but,  as  he 
passed  the  trader,  he  shook  him  by  the  hand,  in 
token  of  encouragement,  and,  proceeding  to  the  head 
of  the  lodge,  sat  down  with  Wenniway  and  the 
war-chief.  After  he  had  smoked  with  them  for  a 
while  in  silence,  he  rose  and  went  out  again.  Very 
soon  he  came  back,  followed  by  his  squaw,  who 
brought  in  her  hands  a  valuable  present,  which  she 


It  '■;  ■■■  1 

V*  ■ 

ini ' 

'•:':^' 

^R 

* 

HH: 

■■V«t' 

■n 

'  ^ 

L    ^  ■■     ^ 

.,  -Ht»» 

im 

■■  l^t#. 

312 


THE  MASSACBE. 


[Chap.  XVH. 


laid  at  the  feet  of  the  i.T'o  chiefs.  Wawatam  then 
addressed  them    f;  rhe  folio  ,ing  spi-ech:  — 

"I'riends  and  relations,  what  is  it  that  I  shall 
say  ?  You  know  what  I  feel.  You  all  have  friends, 
and  brothers,  and  children,  whom  as  yourselves  you 
love;  and  you,  —  what  would  you  experience,  did 
you,  like  me,  behold  your  dearest  friend  —  your 
brother  —  in  the  condition  of  a  slave;  a  slave,  ex- 
posed every  moment  to  insult,  and  to  menaces  of 
death?  This  case,  as  you  all  know,  is  mine.  See 
there,  [pointing  to  Henry,]  my  friend  and  brother 
among  slaves,  —  himself  a  slave ! 

"You  all  well  know  that,  long  before  the  war 
began,  I  adopted  him  as  my  brother.  From  that 
moment,  he  became  one  of  my  family,  so  that  no 
change  of  circumstances  could  break  the  cord  which 
fastened  us  together. 

"He  is  my  brother;  and  because  I  am  your  rela- 
tion, he  is  therefore  your  relation  too;  and  how, 
being  your  relation,  can  he  be  your  slave? 

"  On  the  day  on  which  the  war  began,  you  were 
fearful  lest,  on  this  very  account,  I  should  iiveal 
your  secret.  You  requested,  therefore,  that  I  woiJd 
leave  the  fort,  and  even  cross  the  lake.  I  did  so; 
but  I  did  it  with  reluctance.  I  did  it  with  reluc- 
tance, notwithstanding  that  you,  Minavavana,  who 
had  the  command  in  this  enterprise,  gave  me  your 
promise  that  you  would  protect  my  friend,  deliv- 
ering  him   from   all   danger,   and  giving  him   saiely 

tome.       yv7",;,.;cff.-,    J;,  ,'^/-,.    ■  .■■■■     ■_ 

"The  pei-formance  of  this  promise  I  now  claim. 
I  come  not  vvith  empty  hands  to  ask  it.  You,  Min- 
avavana, best  know  whether   or   not,  as    it  respects 

\»  - 


lat  I  wovild 


Chap.  XVn] 


CANNIBALISM. 


313 


yourself,  you  have  kept  your  word;  but  I  bring 
these  goods  to  buy  off  every  claun  which  any  man 
among  you  all  may  have  on  my  brother  as  his 
prisoner."  ^ 

To  this  speech  the  war-chief  returned  a  favorable 
answer.  Wawatam's  request  was  acceded  to,  the 
present  was  accepted,  and  the  prisoner  released.  Henry 
soon  found  himself  in  the  lodge  of  his  friend,  where 
furs  were  spread  for  him  to  lie  upon,  foor*  and  drink 
brought  for  his  refreshment,  and  every  thing  done  to 
promote  his  comfort  tha«  Indian  hospitality  could 
suggest.  As  he  lay  in  the  lodge,  on  the  day  after 
his  release,  he  heard  a  loud  noise  from  mthin  the 
prison-house,  which  stood  close  at  hand,  and,  looking 
through  a  crevice  in  the  bark,  he  saw  the  dead  bodies 
of  seven  soldiers  dragged  out.  It  appeared  that  a 
noted  chief  had  just  arrived  from  his  wintering  ground. 
Having  come  too  late  to  take  part  in  the  grand 
achievement  of  his  countrymen,  he  was  anxious  to 
manifest  to  all  present  his  entire  approval  of  what 
had  been  done,  and  with  this  design  he  had  entered 
the  lodge  and  despatched  seven  of  the  prisoners  with 
his  knife. 

The  Indians  are  not  habitual  cannibals.  After  a 
victory,  however,  it  often  happens  that  the  bodies  of 
their  enemies  are  consumed  at  a  formal  war-feast  — 
a  superstitious  rite,  adapted,  as  they  think,  to  increase 
their  courage  and  hardihood.  Such  a  feast  took  place 
on  the  present  occasion,  and  most  of  the  chiefs  par- 
took of  it,  though  some  of  them,  at  least,  did  so  with 
repugnance. 


1  Henry,  Travels,  102.    T-e  strict    Henry  was  living  at  Montreal  aa 
authenticity  of  this  very  interesting    late  as  the  year  1809. 
book  has    never    been   questioned. 


40 


AA 


;y 


-^ ' 


1  I'** 


314 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


About  a  week  had  now  elapsed  since  the  massacre, 
and  a  revulsion  of  feeling  began  to  take  place  among 
the  Indians.  Up  to  this  time  all  had  been  triumph 
and  exultation ;  but  they  now  began  to  fear  the  con- 
sequences  of  their  conduct.  Indefinite  and  absurd 
rumors  of  an  approaching  attack  from  the  English 
were  afloat  in  the  camp,  and,  in  their  growing  un- 
easiness,  they  thought  it  expedient  to  shift  their  po- 
sition to  some  point  more  capable  of  defence.  Three 
hundred  and  fifty  warriors,  with  their  families  and 
household  effects,  embarked  m  canoes  for  the  Island 
of  Michillimackinac,  seven  or  eight  miles  distant. 
Wawatam,  with  his  friend  Henry,  was  of  the  num- 
ber. Strong  gusts  of  wind  came  from  the  north, 
and  when  the  fleet  of  canoes  were  half  way  to  the 
island,  it  blew  a  gale,  the  waves  pitching  and  tossing 
with  such  violence,  that  the  frail  and  heavy-laden 
vessels  were  much  endangered.  Many  voices  were 
raised  in  prayer  to  the  Great  Spirit,  and  a  dog  was 
thrown  into  the  lakt,  as  a  sacrifice  to  appease  the 
angry  manitou  of  the  waters.  The  canoes  weathered 
the  storm,  and  soon  drew  ner.r  the  island.  Two 
squaws,  in  the  same  canoe  with  Henry,  raised  their 
voices  in  mournful  wailing  and  lamentation.  Late 
events  had  made  him  sensible  to  every  impression  of 
horror,  and  these  dismal  cries  seemed  ominous  of  some 
new  disaster,  until  he  learned  that  they  were  -  called 
forth  by  the  recollection  of  dead  relatives,  whose 
graves  were  visible  upon  a  neighboring  point  of  t^e 
shore. 

The  Island  of  Michillimackinac,  or  Mackinaw,  ow- 
ing to  its  situation,  its  beauty,  and  the  fish  which 
the  surrounding  waters  supplied,  had  long  been  a 
favorite   resort  of  Indians.     It  is   about  three   miles 


[Chap.  XVII. 

;  massacre, 
ace  among 
;n  triumph 
ur  the  con- 
md  absurd 
tie  English 
;rowing  un- 
ft  their  po- 
ttce.    Three 
imilies  and 
•  the  Island 
les    distant. 
)f  the  num- 
the  north, 
'  way  to  the 
and  tossing 
heavy-laden 
voices  were 
i  a  dog  was 
appease  the 
es  weathered 
sland.     Two 
raised  their 
;ation.      Late 
mpression  of 
nous  of  some 
were  •  called 
itives,    whose 
point  of  i^c 

;ackinaw,  ow- 
3  fish  which 
long  been  a 
three   miles 


Chap.  XVH.] 


! 


ISLAND  OF  MACKINAW. 


315 


wide.  So  clear  are  the  waters  of  Lake  Huron,  which 
wash  its  shores,  that  one  may  count  the  pebbles  at 
an  incredible  depth.  The  island  is  fenced  round  by 
white  limestone  cliffs,  beautifully  contrasting  with  the 
gretn  foliage  that  half  covers  them,  and  in  the  centre 
the  land  rises  in  woody  heights.  The  rock  which 
foriiis  its  foundation  assumes  fantastic  shapes — natu- 
ral bridges,  caverns,  or  sharp  pinnat ''es,  which,  at  this 
day,  are  pointed  out  as  the  curiosities  of  the  region. 
In  many  of  the  caves  have  been  found  quantities  of 
human  bones,  as  if,  at  some  period,  the  island  had 
served  as  a  grand  depository  for  the  dead;  yet  of 
these  remains  the  presenf  race  of  Indians  can  give 
no  account.  Legends  and  superstitions  attached  a 
mysterious  celebrity  to  the  place,  and  here  it  was 
said  the  fairies  of  Indian  tradition  might  often  be 
seen  dancing  upon  the  white  rocks,  or  basking  in 
the  moonlight.^ 

The  Indians  landed  at  the  margin  of  a  little  bay. 
Unlading  their  canoes,  and  lifting  them  high  and  dry 
upon  the  beach,  they  began  to  erect  their  lodges,  and 


1  Tradition,  preserved  by  Henry 
Conner,  Esq.  See  also  Schoolcraft, 
Algic  Researches,  II.  159. 

"Their  tradition  concerning  the 
name  of  this  little  island  is  curious. 
They  say  that  Michapous,  the  chief 
of  spirits,  sojourned  long  in  that  vi- 
cinity. They  believed  that  a  moun- 
tain on  the  border  of  the  lake  was  the 
place  of  his  abode,  and  they  called 
it  by  his  name.  It  was  here,  say 
they,  that  he  first  instructed  man  to 
fabricate  nets  for  taking  fish,  and 
where  he  has  collected  3ie  greatest 
qu  ntity  of  these  nnny  inhabitants  of 
the  waters.  On  the  island  he  left 
spirits,  named  Imakinakos  ;  and  from 
these  aerial  possessors  it  has  re- 
;eived  the  appellation  of  Michili- 
inakinac. 


"  When  the  savages,  in  those  quar- 
ters, make  a  feast  of  fish,  they  invoke 
the  spirits  of  the  island,  thank  them 
for  their  bounty,  and  entreat  them  to 
continue  their  protection  to  tlieir  fam- 
ilies. They  demand  of  them  to  pre- 
serve their  nets  and  canous  from 
the  swelling  and  destructive  billows, 
when  the  lakes  are  agitated  by  storms. 
All  who  assist  in  the  ceremony 
lengthen  theur  voices  together,  which 
is  an  act  of  gratitude.  In  the  obser- 
vance of  this  duty  of  their  religion, 
they  were  formerly  very  punctual  and 
scrupulous ;  but  the  French  rallied 
them  so  much  upon  the  subject,  that 
they  became  ashamed  to  practise  it 
openly."  —  Heriot,  Travels  in  Cana- 
da, 185. 


(tot,  •»•««»( 


'■■4 


il' 


n-i 


31f 


\  ; 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


before  night  had  completed  the  work.  Messengers 
arrived  on  the  next  day  from  Pontiac,  informing  them 
that  he  was  besieging  Detroit,  and  urging  them  to 
come  to  his  aid.  But  tlieir  warlike  ardor  had  well 
nigh  died  out.  A  senseless  alarm  prevailed  among 
them,  and  they  now  thought  more  of  securing  their 
own  safety  than  of  injuring  the  enemy.  A  vigilant 
watch  was  kept  up  all  day,  and  the  unusual  precau- 
tion taken  of  placing  guards  at  night.  Their  fears, 
however,  did  not  prevent  them  from  seizing  two  Eng- 
^  lish  trading  canoes,  which  had  come  from  Montreal  by 
way  of  the  Ottawa.  Among  the  booty  found  in  them 
was  a  quantity  of  whiskey,  and  a  general  debauch 
<  i  was  the  immediate  result.  As  night  closed  in,  the 
dolorous  chanting  of  drunken  songs  was  heard  from 
within  the  lodges,  the  prelude  of  a  scene  of  riot ;  and 
Wawatam,  knowing  that  his  friend  Henry's  life  would 
be  in  danger,  privately  led  hitn  out  of  the  camp  to 
a  cavern  in  the  hills,  towards  the  interior  of  the 
island.  Here  thr  trader  spent  the  night,  in  a  soli- 
tude made  doubly  dreary  by  a  sense  of  his  forlora 
and  perilous  situation.  On  waking  in  the  morning, 
he  found  that  he  had  been  lying  on  human  bones, 
which  covered  the  floor  of  the  cave.  The  place  had 
anciently  served  as  a  charnel-house.  Here  he  spent 
another  solitary  night,  before  his  friend  came  to  ap- 
prise him  that  he  might  return   with  safety  to  the 

camp.    /.,.,>;,;.:■  ;.fe-.  .J, y   ,..      ^■■■;.;- -/Vv-; -..- A^, 

Famine  soon  began  to  be  felt  among  the  Indians, 
who  were  sometimes  without  food  for  days  together. 
No  complaints  were  heard ;  but  with  faces  blackened, 
in  sign  of  sorrow,  they  jjatiently  endured  the  priva- 
tion with  that  resignation,  under  inevitable  suffering, 
which  distinguishes    the   whole  Indian   race.     They 


[Chap.  XVII. 

Messengers 
trming  them 
ng  them  to 
or  had  well 
tiled  among 
curing  their 
A  vigilant 
sual  precau- 
Their  fears, 
ig  two  Eng- 
Montreal  by 
and  in  them 
jral  debauch 
osed  in,  the 
I  heard  from 
of  riot;  and 
r's  life  would 
the  camp  to 
erior  of  the 
it,  in  a  soli- 
'  his  forlorn 
the  morning, 
uman  bones, 
tie  place  had 
2re  he   spent 

came  to  ap- 
safety  to  the 

the  Indians, 
ays  together. 
3S  blackened, 
id  the  priva- 
ble  suffering, 
race.     They 


Chap.  XVH.] 


GREEN  BAY.       % 


t/^ 


317 


were  at  length  compelled  to  cross  over  to  the  north 
shore  of  Lake  Huron,  where  fish  were  more  abundant, 
and  here  they  remained  until  the  end  of  siunmer, 
when  they  gradually  dispersed,  each  family  repair- 
ing to  its  winter  hunting-grounds.  Henry,  paint- 
ed and  attired  like  an  Indian,  followed  his  friend 
Wawatam,  and  spent  a  lonely  winter  among  the 
frozen  forests,  hunting  the  bear  and  moose  for  sub- 
sistence.^ ^:;r^-''-^'    '■■'-■:'■    ^:if''^:-"yv-.  ■'■■'.:  ''    '.*,.,:■■■.,-.■ 

The  posts  of  Green  Bay  and  the  Sault  Ste.  Marie 
did  not  share  the  fate  of  MicMUimackinac.  During 
tae  preceding  winter,  Ste.  Marie  had  been  partially 
destroyed  by  an  accidental  fire,  and  was  therefore 
abandoned,  the  garrison  withdrawing  to  Michillimack- 
inac,  where  many  of  them  perished  in  the  massacre. 
The  fort  at  Green  Bay  first  received  an  English  gar- 
rison in  the  year  1761,  at  the  same  time  with  the 
other  posts  of  this  region.  The  force  consisted  of 
seventeen    men,    commanded    by    Lieutenant    Gorell. 


1  The  following  description  of  Min- 
avavana,  or  the  Grand  Sautcur,  who 
was  the  leader  of  the  Ojibwas  at 
the  massacre  of  Michiilimackinac,  is 
drawn  from  Carver's  Travels :  — 

"  The  first  I  accosted  were  Chipe- 
ways,  inhabiting  near  the  Ottowaw 
lakes ;  who  received  me  with  great 
cordiality,  and  shook  me  by  the  hand, 
in  token  of  friendship.  At  some  lit- 
tle distance  behind  tliese  stood  a 
chief  remarkably  tall  and  well  made, 
but  of  so  stem  an  aspect,  that  the 
most  undaunted  person  could  not  be- 
hold him  without  feeling  some  degree 
cf  terror.  He  seemed  to  have  passed 
the  meridian  of  life,  and  by  the  mode 
in  which  he  was  painted  and  tatowed, 
I  discovered  that  he  was  of  high 
raiik.  However,  I  approached  him 
in  a  courteous  manner,  and  expected 
to  have  met  witli  the  same  reception 


I  had  done  from  the  others ;  but,  to 
my  great  surprise,  he  withheld  his 
hand,  and  looking  fiercely  at  me,  said, 
in  the  Chipeway  tongue,  *Cawin 
nishtahin  saganosh,^  that  is,  'The 
English  are  no  good.'  As  he  had 
his  tomahawk  in  his  hand,  I  expected 
that  this  laconick  sentence  would 
have  been  followed  by  a  blow;  to 
prevent  which  I  drew  a  pistol  from 
my  belt,  and,  holding  it  in  a  careless 

Eosition,  passed  close  by  him,  to  let 
im  see  I  was  not  afraid  of  him. 
....  Since  I  came  to  England,  I 
have  been  informed,  that  the  Grand 
Sautor,  having  rendered  himself  more 
and  more  disgustful  to  the  English 
by  his  inveterate  enmity  towards 
them,  was  at  length  stabbed  in  his 
tent,  as  he  encamped  near  Michiili- 
mackinac, by  a  trader."  —  Carver,  96. 

AA* 


teti.: -MMoit, 


r 


\   I 


i  MS, 

'•,i'!S:t- 


I'm 


i 


■smw^'iuK 


iSf. 


318 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


Though  SO  few  in  number,  their  duties  were  of  a 
very  important  character.  In  the  neighborhood  of 
Green  Bay  were  numerous  and  poweriil  Indian 
tribes.  The  Menomonies  lived  at  the  mouth  of  Fox 
River,  close  to  the  fort.  The  Winnebagoes  had  several 
villages  on  the  take  which  bears  their  name,  and  the 
Sacs  and  Foxes  were  established  on  the  River  Wis- 
consin,  in  a  large  village  composed  of  houses  neatly 
built  of  logs  and  bark,  and  survounded  by  fields  of 
corn  and  vegetables.'  West  of  the  Mississippi  was 
■  the  powerful  nation  of  the  Dahcotah,  whose  strength 
was  loosely  estimated  at  thirty  thousand  fighting  men, 
and  who.,  in  the  excess  of  their  haughtiness,  styled 
the  surrounding  tribes  their  dogs  and  slaves.**  The 
commandant  of  Green  Bay  was  the  representative  of 
the  British  government,  in  communication  with  all 
these  tribes.  It  devolved  upon  him  to  secure  their 
friendship,  and  keep  them  at  peace ;  and  he  was  also 
intrusted,  in  a  gr^"t  measure,  with  the  power  of  reg- 
ulating the  fur-trade  among  them.  In  the  course  of 
each  season,  parties  of  Indians,  from  eveiy  quarter, 
would  come  to  the  fort,  each  expecting  to  be  received 
with  speeches  and  presents. 

Gorell  seems  to  have  acquitted  himself  with  great 
judgment  and  prudence.  On  first  arriving  at  the 
fort,  he  had  found  its  defences  decayed  and  ruinous, 
the  Canadian  inhabitants  unfriendly  and  many  of 
the  Indians  disposed  to  hostility.  His  good  conduct 
contributed  to  allay  their  irritation,  and  he  was  par- 
ticularly successful  in  conciliating  his  immediate  neigh- 
bors,  the   Menomonies.      They   had   taken   an   active 

,♦    '  Carver,  Travels,  47.  library  of  the   Maryland  Historical 

-  Gorell,  Journal,  MS.    The  origi-    Society,  to  whom  it  was  presented  by 
nal   manuscript  ia  preserved  in  tlie    Robert  Gilmor,  Esq. 


CnAP.XVn.]  LETTER  FROM  ETHERINQTON. 


319 


iA 


i?n   an   active 


part  in  the  late  war  between  France  and  England, 
and  their  spirits  were  humbled  by  the  losses  they 
had  sustained,  as  well  as  by  recent  ravages  of  the 
small-pox.  Gorell  summoned  them  to  a  council,  and 
delivered  a  speech,  in  which  he  avoided  wounding 
their  pride,  but  at  the  same  time  assumed  a  tone  of 
firmness  and  decision,  such  as  can  alone  command 
an  Indian's  respect.  He  told  them  that  the  King 
of  England  had  heard  of  their  ill  conduct,  but  that 
he  was  ready  to  forget  all  that  had  passed.  If,  how- 
ever, they  should  again  give  him  cause  of  complaint, 
he  would  send  an  army,  numerous  as  the  trees  of 
the  forest,  ana  utterly  destroy  them.  Fluttering  ex- 
pressions of  confidence  and  esteem  succeeded,  and  the 
whole  was  enforced  by  the  distribution  of  a  few  pres- 
ents. The  Menomonies  replied  by  assurances  of 
friendship,  more  sincerely  made  and  faithfully  kept 
than  could  have  been  expected.  As  Indians  of  the 
other  tribes  came  from  time  to  time  to  the  fort,  they 
met.  with  a  similar  reception,  and,  in  his  whole  in- 
tercourse with  them,  the  constant  aim  of  the  com- 
mandant was  to  gain  their  good  will.  The  result 
was  most  happy  for  himself  and  his  garrison. 

On  the  fifteenth  of  June,  1763,  an  Ottawa  Indian 
brought  to  Gorell  the  following  letter  from  Captain 
Etherington:  — 

"  Michillimackinac,  June  11,  1763. 

"Dear  Sir: 

"This  place  was  taken  by  surprise,  on  the  fourth 
instant,  by  the  Chippeways,  [Ojibwas,]  at  which  time 
Lieutenant  Jamet  and  twenty  [fifteen]  more  were 
killed,  and  all  tlie  rest  taken  prisoners ;  but  our  good 
friends,  the  Ottawas,  have  taken  Lieutenant  Lesley,  me, 


J:    J**' ( Hiftiti, 
■  \        ^^     ■•■.» 


H 


Dl      • 


■# 


I  '  i 


'  I 


■  ■''WW^ 


320 


i.« 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


and  eleven  men,  out  of  their  hands,  and  have  promised 
to  reinstate  us  again.  You'll  therefore,  on  the  receipt 
of  this,  which  I  send  by  a  canoe  of  Ottawas,  set  out 
with  all  your  garrison,  and  what  English  traders  you 
have  with  you,  and  come  with  the  Indian  who  gives 
you  this,  who  will  conduct  you  safe  to  me.  You 
must  be  sure  to  follow  the  instruction  you  receive 
from  the  bearer  of  this,  as  you  are  by  no  means  to 
come  to  this  post  before  you  see  me  at  the  \illage, 

twenty  miles  from  this I  must  once  more  beg 

you'll   lose  no  time  in   coming  to  join  me;   at   the 
same   time,  be  very  careful,  and  always  be  on  your 
guard.     I  long  much  to  see  you,  and  am,  dear  sir, 
"Your  most  humble  serv't. 

"  Geo.  Etherington. 

"J.  GOHELL, 

"  Royal  Americans."  _ 

On  receiving  this  letter,  Gorell  summoned  the  Me- 
nomonies  to  a  council,  told  them  what  the  Ojibwas 
had  done,  and  said  that  he  and  his  soldiers  were 
going  to  Michillimackinac  to  restore  order,  adding, 
that  during  his  absence  he  commended  the  fort  to 
their  care.  Great  niunbers  of  the  Winnebagoes  and 
of  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  afterwards  arrived,  and  Gorell 
addressed  them  in  nearly  the  same  words.  Presents 
were  given  them,  and  it  soon  appeared  that  the 
greater  part  were  well  disposed  towards  the  Eng- 
lish, though  a  few  were  inclined  to  prevent  their  de- 
parture, and  even  to  threaten  hostility.  At  this 
juncture,  a  fortunate  incident  occurred.  .\  Dahcotah 
chief  arrived  with  a  message  from  his  people  to 
the  following  import:  They  had  heard,  he  said,  of 
the  bad  conduct  of  the  Ojibwas.     They  hoped  that 


Cur.  XVIIl 


GREEN  BAY  ABANDONED. 


321 


IRINGTON. 


the  tribes  of  Green  Bay  would  not  follow  their  exam- 
ple, but,  on  the  contrary,  would  protect  the  English 
garrison.  Unless  they  did  so,  the  Dahcotah  would 
fall  upon  them,  and  take  ample  revenge.  This  au- 
spicious interference  must,  no  doubt,  be  ascribed  to 
the  hatred  with  which  the  Dahcotah  had  long  re- 
garded the  Ojibwas.  That  the  latter  should  espouse 
one  side  of  the  quarrel,  was  abundant  reason  to  the 
Dahcotah  for  adopting  the  other.  c       ;  «• 

Some  of  the  Green  Bay  Indians  were  also  at  en- 
mity with  the  Ojibwas,  and  all  opposition  to  the 
departure  of  the  English  was  now  at  an  end.  In- 
deed, some  of  tho  more  friendly  offered  to  escort  the 
garrison  on  its  way ;  a  I  on  the  twenty-first  of  June, 
Gorell's  party  embarlv;  i  in  several  bateaux,  accompa- 
nied by  ninety  warriors  in  canoes.  Approaching  Isle 
du  Castor,  nr  l;:  he  mouth  oi  Green  Bay,  an  alarm 
was  given  that  the  Ojibwas  were  lying  there  in  am- 
bush ;  on  which  the  Menomonies  raised  the  war-song, 
stripped  themselves,  and  prepared  to  do  battle  in  be- 
half of  the  English.  The  alarm,  however,  proved 
false;  and,  having  crossed  Lake  Michigan  in  safety, 
the  party  arrived  at  the  village  of  L'Arbre  Croche 
on  the  thirtieth.  The  Ottawas  came  down  to  the 
beach  to  salute  them  with  a  discharge  of  guns,  and, 
on  landing,  they  were  presented  with  the  pipe  of 
pt.Cv.  Captain  Etherington  and  Lieutenant  Leslie, 
with  eleven  men,  were  in  the  village,  detained  as 
prisoners,  though  treated  with  kindness.  It  was 
thought  that  the  Ottawas  intended  to  disarm  the 
party  of  Gorell  also;  but  the  latter  gave  out  that  he 
would  resist  such  an  attempt,  and  his  soldiers  were 
permitted  to  retain  their  weapons. 

Several  succeeding  days  were  occupied  by  the 
41 


AM. 

B 

«li" 

*«t>  «. 

? 

t 

(•> 

i» 

c  ■ 

322 


THE  MASSACRE. 


[Chap.  XVII. 


Indians  in  holding  councils.  Those  from  Green  Bay 
requested  the  Ottawas  to  set  their  prisoners  at  lib- 
erty,  and  the  latter,  at  length,  assented.  A  difficulty 
still  remained,  as  the  Ojibwas  had  declared  that  they 
would  prevent  the  English  from  passing  down  to 
Montreal.  Theu*  chiefs  were  therefore  summoned; 
and  being  at  this  time,  as  we  have  seen,  in  a  state 
of  much  alarm,  they  at  length  reluctantly  yielded  the 
point.  On  the  eighteenth  of  July,  the  English,  es- 
corted by  a  fleet  of  Indian  canoes,  left  L'Arbre  Croche, 
and  reaching,  without  interruption,  the  portage  of 
the  River  Ottawa,  descended  to  Montreal,  where  they 
all  arrived  in  safety,  on  the  thirteenth  day  of  Au- 
gust.' Except  the  garrison  of  Detroit,  not  a  British 
soldier  now  remained  in  the  region  of  the  lakes. 

1  Gorell,  Journal,  MS. 


m 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 


9m.  .•Siw%i 


^  'ir 


FRONTIER   FORTS   AND   SETTLEMENTS. 

We  have  followed  the  war  to  its  farthest  confines, 
and  watched  it  in  its  remotest  operations;  not  be- 
cause there  is  any  thing  especially  worthy  to  be 
chronicled  in  the  capture  of  a  backwoods  fort,  and 
the  slaughter  of  a  few  soldiers,  but  because  these 
acts  exhibit  some  of  the  characteristic  traits  of  the 
actors.  It  was  along  the  line  of  the  British  fron- 
tier that  the  war  raged  with  its  most  destructive  \io- 
lence.  To  destroy  the  garrisons,  and  then  turn  upon 
the  settlements,  had  been  the  original  plan  of  the 
Indians;  and  while  Pontiac  was  ijushing  the  siege 
of  Detroit,  and  the  smaller  interior  posts  were  treach- 
erously assailed,  the  tempest  was  gathering  which 
was  soon  to  burst  along  the  whole  frontier. 

In  1763,  the  British  settlements  did  not  extend 
beyond  the  Alleghanies.  In  the  province  of  New 
York,  they  reached  no  farther  than  the  German 
Flats,  on  the  Mohawk.  In  Pennsylvania,  the  town 
of  Bedford  might  be  regarded  as  the  extreme  verge 
of  the  frontier,  while  the  settlements  of  Virginia 
extended  to  a  corresponding  distance.  Through  the 
adjacent  wilderness  ran  various  lines  of  militaiy 
posts,  to  make  good  the  communication  from  point 
to  point.  One  of  the  most  important  among  these 
passed  through  the  country  of  the  Six   Nations,  and 


>*   -... 


".i 


s.  „  I 


lit 


324  FRONTIER  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Chap.  XVHL 

guarded  the  route  between  the  northern  colonies 
and  Lake  Ontario.  This  communication  was  formed 
by  the  Hudson,  the  Mohawk,  Wood  Creek,  the 
Oneida  Lake,  and  the  Eiver  Oswego.  It  was  de- 
fended by  f'orts  Stanwix,  Brewerton,  Oswego,  and 
two  or  three  smaller  posts.  Near  the  western  ex- 
tremity of  Lake  Ontario  stood  Fort  Niagara,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  river  whence  it  derived  its  name.  It 
was  a  strong  and  extensive  work,  guarding  the 
access  to  the  whole  interior  country,  both  by  way 
of  the  Oswego  communication  just  mentioned,  and 
by  that  of  Canada  and  the  St.  Lawrence.  From 
Fort  Niagara  the  route  lay  by  a  portage  past  the 
great  falls  to  Presqu'Isle,  on  Lake  Erie,  where  the 
town  of  Erie  now  stands.  Thence  the  traveller 
could  pass,  by  a  short  overland  passage,  to  Fort  Le 
Bccuf,  on  a  branch  of  the  Alleghany;  thence,  by 
water,  to  Venango;  and  thence,  down  the  Alleghany, 
to  Fort  Pitt.  This  last-mentioned  post  stood  on  the 
l)rescnt  site  of  Pittsburg  —  the  point  of  land  formed 
by  the  confluence  of  the  Alleghany  and  the  Monon- 
gahela.  Its  position  was  as  captivating  to  the  eye 
of  an  artist  as  it  was  commanding  in  a  military 
point  of  \dew.  On  the  left,  the  Monongahela  de- 
scended through  a  woody  valley  of  singular  beauty; 
on  the  right,  flowed  the  Alleghany,  beneath  steep 
and  lofty  banks ;  and  both  united,  in  front,  to  form 
the  broad  Ohio,  which,  flanked  by  picturesque  hills 
and  declivities,  began  at  this  point  its  interminable 
progress  towards  the  Mississippi.  The  place  already 
had  its  historic  associations,  though,  as  yet,  their 
roughness  was  unmellowed  by  the  lapse  of  time.  It 
was  here  that  the  French  had  erected  Fort  du 
Quesne.     Within  a  few  miles,  Braddock  encountered 


Chap.  XVni.] 


FORT  PITT. 


325 


his  disastrous  overthrow;  and  on  the  hill  behind 
the  fort,  Grant's  Highlanders  and  Lewis'  Virginians 
had  been  surrounded  and  captured,  though  not  with- 
out a  stout  resistance  on  the  part  of  the  latter. 

Fort  Pitt  was  bvilt  by  General  Stanwix,  in  the 
year  1759,  upon  the  ruins  of  Fort  du  Quesne,  de- 
stroyed by  Generf  J  Forbes.  It  was  a  strong  fortifi- 
cation, with  ramparts  of  earth,  faced  with  brick  on 
the  side  looking  down  the  Ohio.  Its  walls  have 
long  since  been  levelled  to  the  ground,  and  over 
their  ruins  have  risen  warehouses,  and  forges  with 
countless  furnace  chimneys,  rolling  up  their  black 
volumes  of  smoke.  Where  once  the  bark  canoe 
was  tied  to  the  bank,  a  throng  of  steamers  now 
lie  moored  along  rhe  crowded  levee. 

Fort  Pitt  stood  far  aloof  in  the  forest,  and  one 
might  journey  eastward  full  two  hundred  miles, 
before  the  English  settlements  began  to  thicken. 
Behind  it  lay  a  broken  and  woody  tract ;  then 
succeeded  the  great  barrier  of  the  Alleghanies,  trav- 
ersing the  country  in  successive  ridges ;  and  beyond 
these  lay  vast  woods,  extending  to  the  Susquehanna. 
Eastward  of  this  river,  cabins  of  settlers  became 
more  numerous,  until,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Lan- 
caster, the  country  ar.sumed  an  appearance  of  pros- 
perity and  cultivation.  Tvo  roads  led  from  Fort 
Pitt  to  the  settlements,  one  of  which  Avas  cut  r-^ 
General  Braddock  in  his  disastrous  march  across  th 
mountains,  from  Cumberland,  in  the  year  1755. 
The  other,  which  was  the  more  frequented,  passed 
by  Carlisle  and  Bedford,  and  was  made  by  General 
Forbes,  in  1758.  Leaving  the  fort  by  this  latter 
route,  the  traveller  woull  find  himself,  after  a  jour- 
ney of  fifty-six  miles,  at  the   little  post  of  Ligonier, 

BB 


t  r. 


<     .! 


¥: 


c 


vj; 


It 


326 


FRONTIF.R  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Chap.  XVni. 


whence  he  would  soon  reach  Fort  Bedford,  about 
a  hundred  miles  from  I'ort  Pitt.  It  was  nestled 
among  mountains,  and  surrounded  by  clearings  and 
log  cabins.  Passing  several  small  posts  and  settle- 
ments, he  would  arrive  at  Carlisle,  nearly  a  hun- 
dred miles  farther  east,  a  place  resembling  Bed- 
ford in  its  general  aspect,  aUhough  of  greater  ex- 
tent. Numerous  houses  of  settlers  were  scattered 
here  and  there  among  the  valleys  on  each  side  of 
the  road  from  Fort  Pitt,  so  that  the  number  of  fam- 
ilies beyond  the  Susquehanna  amounted  to  several 
hundreds,  thinly  distributed  over  a  great  space, 
From  Carlisle  to  Harris'  Ferry,  now  Harrisburg,  on 
the  Susquehanna,  was  but  a  short  distance;  and 
from  thence,  the  road  led  directly  into  the  heart  of 
the  settlements.  The  frontiers  of  Virginia  bore  a 
general  resemblance  to  those  of  Pennsylvania.  It  is 
not  necessary  at  present  to  indicate  minutely  the 
position  of  their  scattered  settlements,  and  the  small 
posts  intended  to  protect  them.^  Along  these  boi- 
ders  all  had  remained  quiet,  and  nothing  occurred  to 
excite  alarm  or  uneasiness,  until  the  twenty-seventh 
of  May,  when,  at  about  dusk  in  the  evening,  a 
party  of  Indians  was  seen  from  Fort  Pitt,  descend- 
ing the  banks  of  the  Alleghany,  with  laden  pack- 
horses.  They  built  fires,  and  encamped  on  the 
shore  tUl  daybreak,  when  they  all  crossed  over  to 
the  fort,  bringing  with  them  a  great  quantity  of 
valuable  furs.  These  they  sold  to  the  traders,  de- 
manding,  in   exchange,    bullets,   hatchets,    and    gun- 


1  The  authorities  for  tlie  foregoing  cellent  antiquarian  work,  published 

topographical  sketch  are  drawn  from  at  Pittfihurg;  together  with  various 

the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Collec-  maps,  plans,  and  contemporary  pa- 

tions,  and  tho  Olden  Tin""   an  ex-  pers. 


5.   [CnAP.XVni. 


Chap.  XVni.] 


ALARMS  AT  TORT  PITT. 


327 


powder;  but  their  conduct  was  so  peculiar  as  to 
excite  the  just  suspicion  that  they  came  either  as 
spies  or  with  some  other  insidious  design.^  Hardly 
were  they  gone  when  ddings  came  in  that  Colonel 
Clapham,  with  several  persons,  both  men  and  women, 
had  been  murdered  and  scalped  near  the  fort;  and  it 
was  soon  after  discovered  that  the  inhabitants  of  an 
Indian  town,  a  few  miles  up  the  Alleghany,  had 
totally  abandoned  their  cabins,  as  if  bent  on  some 
plan*  of  mischief.  On  the  next  day,  two  soldiers 
were  shot  within  a  mile  of  tho  fort.  An  express 
was  hastily  sent  to  Venango,  to  warn  the  little  gar- 
rison of  danger;  but  he  returned  almost  immediately, 
having  been  twice  fired  at,  and  severely  wounded.** 
A  trader  named  Calhoun  now  came  in  from  the 
Indian  village  of  Tuscaroras,  with  intelligence  of  a 
yet  more  startling  kind.  At  eleven  o'clock  on  the 
night  of  the  twenty-seventh,  a  chief  named  Shingas, 
with  several  of  the  principal  warriors  in  the  place, 
had   come   to  Calhoun's   cabin,  and  earnestly  begged 


1  Gordon,  Hist.  Pa.  622. 

2  MS.  Letter  —  Bouquet  to  Am- 
herst, June  5. 

Extract  from  a  letter  —  Fort  Pitt, 
May  31,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1798.) 

"  We  have  most  melancholy  Ac- 
counts here  —  The  Indians  have 
broke  out  in  several  Places,  and 
murdered  Colc'-^l  Clapham  and  his 
Family  ;  also  t»  i  of  our  Soldiers  at 
the  Saw-mill,  near  the  Fort,  and  two 
Scalps  are  taken  from  each  man. 
An  Indian  has  brought  a  War-Belt 
to  Tuscarora,  and  says  Detroit  is  in- 
vested ;  and  that  St  Dusky  is  cut 
off,  and  Ensign  Pawlcy  made  Pris- 
oner— T,cvy's  Goods  are  stopt  at 
TuscLi,  r-a  by  tlie  Indians-  .^  1, 
Night  eleven  Men  were  attack-  •  t 
Beaver  Creek,  eight  or  nine  of  whuin, 
it  is  said,  were  killed  —  And  Twentv- 


five  of  Macrae's  and  Alison's  Horses, 
loaded  with  Skins,  are  all  taken." 

Extract   from    a    MS.    Letter  — 
Captain  Ecuyer  to  Colonel  Bouquet. 
"  Fort  Pitt,  29th  May,  1763. 

"  Just  as  I  had  finished  my  Letter, 
Three  men  came  in  from  Clapham's, 
with  the  Melancholy  News,  that 
Yesterday,  at  tlirec  O'clock  in  the 
Afternoon,  the  Indians  Murdered 
Clapham,  and  Every  Body  in  his 
House :  These  three  men  were  out 
at  Work,  &  Escaped  through  the 
Woods.  I  Immediately  Armed  them, 
and  sent  them  to  Assist  our  People 
at  Bushy  Run.  The  Indiai^  ♦^"ve 
told  Byerly  (at  Bushy  Run)  to  '  ;  c- 
his  Place  in  Four  Days,  or  hu  md 
his  Famil,'  would  all  be  murdered: 
I  am  Unvosyfor  the  little  Posts  — 
Ai^  U't  this.  I  will  anawr!  ;■•  ■  it-" 


.^mt;    i  1! 


■*♦. 


i  ■  .*. 


328 


FRONTIER  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Cuap.  XVIII. 


him  to  depart,  declaring  that  they  did  not  wish  to 
see  him  killed  before  their  eyes.  The  Ottawas  and 
Ojiili'Af'.s.  they  said,  had  taken  up  the  hatchet,  and 
capturt'd  Dt  iroit,  Sandusky,  and  all  the  forts  of  the 
i.ilerior,  I'hv  Delawares  and  Shawanoes  of  the  Ohio 
werr  foUoMirt  their  example,  and  were  murdering 
ail  the  trautis  among  them.  Calhoun  and  the 
thirteen  men  in  his  employ  lost  no  time  in  taking 
their  depart'ire.  The  Indians  forced  them  to  leave 
their  gur*.  he  lind,  promising  that  they  would  give 
them  thrcj  warriors  to  guide  them  in  safety  to  Fort 
Pitt,  '')ut,  the  whole  proved  a  piece  of  characteristic 
d.ssimulation  and  treachery.  The  three  guides  led 
them  into  an  ambuscade  at  the  mouth  of  Beaver 
Creek.  A  volley  of  balls  showered  upon  them; 
eleven  were  killed  on  the  spot,  and  Calhoun  and 
two  others  alone  made  their  escape.' 

The  intelligence  concerning  the  fate  of  the  traders 
in  the  Indian  villages  proved  but  too  true.  They 
were  slaughtered  every  where,  without  mercy,  and 
often  under  circumstances  of  the  foulest  barbarity. 
A  boy  named  M'Cullough,  captured  during  the 
French  war,  and  at  this  timi  i  prisoner  among  the 
Indians,  relates,  in  his  published  narrative,  that  he, 
with  a  party  of  Indian  children,  went  out,  one  even- 
ing, to  gaze  with  awn  imd  wonder  at  the  body  of 
a  trader,  which  lay  by  the  side  of  the  path,  mangled 
with  tonipliawks,  and  stuck  full  of  arrows.**    It  was 

1  Copy  of  int'^llipencc  brought  to  Dickson,  amonpr  the  white  people) 

Fort  Pitt  by  Mr.  Calhoun,  MS.  came  to  our  lioiv^e ;  he  had  a  pistol 

3  M'Cullough  gives  the  follow  ip,^  nni.]  a  isirpescal'    ■p,-knife,  concealed 

account  of  the  murder  of  another  ot  m  ioi  h;.<  bl<tnl;'%  belted  round  his 

the  traders,  named  Gror-;»: —  body.     He  mfo^'ned  KettooyuilemI, 

"About    sunrise,  Mtusough    '  m  (for  that  was  my  ndopted  brotherV 

(an    Indian,    my    adopted   bro;;  cr's  name,]  that  he  came  to  kill  Tom 

nephew,  known  by  the  name  ol  Ben  Green;    but  Kettoohhaltnd  e"   ;av- 


,'■'     i  ; 


}.    [CiiAP.  XVIII, 

not  wish  to 

Ottawas   and 

hatchet,   and 

forts  of  the 

of  the  Ohio 

•e    murdering 

iin    and    the 

[16  in   taking 

lem  to   leave 

f  would   give 

afety  to  Fort 

characteristic 

16    guides  led 

th   of  Beavei 

upon    them ; 

Calhoun   and 

af  the  traders 
»  true.  They 
t  mercy,  and 
lest  barharitv. 

during  the 
ler  among  the 
itive,  that  he, 
Dut,  one  even- 

the  body  of 
path,  mangled 
coyva.^    It  was 


the  white  people) 
se;  he  had  a  pistol 

■!g-kniie,  concealed 
.•i,  belteii  round  his 
•ned  KeHoohJiaknd, 
y  ndoptcd  brother'? 

carne  to  kill  Tom 
itoohhalend  e"    av- 


CnAP.  xvm.] 


SLAUGHTER  OF  TRADERS. 


;>'?'!  _cr 


329 


statp^  in  the  journals  of  the  day,  that  more  than  a 
hundred  traders  fell  victims,  and  that  the  property 
taken  from  them,  or  seized  at  the  capture  of  the 
interior  posts,  amounted  to  an  incredible  sum.^  ;  v 
The  Moravian  Loskiel  relates  that  in  the  villages 
of  the  Hurons  or  Wyandots,  meaning  probably  those 
of  Sandusky,  the  traders  were  so  numerous  that  the 
Indians  were  afraid  to  attack  them  openly,  and  had 
recourse  to  the  following  stratagem:  They  told  their 
unsuspecting  victims  that  the  surrounding  tribes  had 
risen  in  arins,  and  were  soon  coming  that  way,  bent 
on  killing  every  Englishman  they  could  find.  The 
Wyandots  averred  that  they  would  gladly  protect 
their  friends  the  white  men;  but  that  it  would  be 
impossible  to  do  so,  unless  ih.e  latter  would  consent, 
for  the  sake  of  appearances,  to  become  their  prisoners. 


cured  to  persuade  him  off  it.  They 
walked  out  together,  and  Green  fol- 
lowed them,  endeavouring,  as  I  sup- 
pose, to  discover  the  cause  of  the 
alarm  the  night  before;  in  a  short 
time  they  returned  to  the  house,  and 
immediately  went  out  again.  Green 
asked  me  to  bring  him  his  horse,  as 
we  heard  the  bell  a  short  distance 
off;  he  then  went  after  the  Indians 
again,  and  I  went  for  the  horse.  As 
I  was  returning,  I  observed  them 
coming  out  of  a  house  about  two 
hundred  yards  from  ours ;  Kettooh- 
halend  was  foremost.  Green  in  the 
middle ;  I  took  but  slight  notice  of 
them,  until  I  heard  the  report  of  a 
pistol ;  I  cast  my  eyes  towards  them, 
and  observed  uie  smoke,  and  saw 
Green  standing  on  the  side  of  tlie 
path,  with  his  hands  across  his 
breast;  I  thought  it  had  been  hun 
that  shot;  he  stood  a  few  minutes, 
then  fell  on  his  face  across  the  path. 
I  instantly  got  off  the  horse,  and 
held  him  by  the  bridle,  —  Kettoohha- 
hid  sunk  his  pipo  tomahawk  into  his 
skull ;  Mussotighichese  stabbed  him 
under  the  annnit  w  itli  his  scalnincr. 

4.'2 


knife ;  he  had  shot  liim  between  the 
shoulders  with  his  pistol.  The 
sqaaws  gathered  about  him  and 
stripped  him  naked,  trailed  him 
down  the  bank,  and  plunged  him 
into  the  creek ;  there  was  a  freshet  in 
the  creek  at  the  time,  which  carried 
him  off.  Musaovghwhese  then  came 
to  me,  (where  I  was  holding  the 
horse,  as  I  had  not  moved  from  the 
spot  where  I  wr'3  when  Green  was 
shot,)  with  the  bloody  knife  in  his 
hand ;  he  told  me  that  he  was  coming 
to  kill  me  next ;  he  reached  out  his 
hand  and  took  hold  of  the  bridle, 
telling  me  that  that  was  his  horse ;  I 
was  glad  to  parley  with  him  on  the 
terms,  and  delivered  the  horse  to 
him.  All  the  Indians  in  the  town 
immediately  collected  together,  and 
started  off  to  the  Salt  Licks,  where 
the  rest  of  the  traders  were,  and 
murdered  the  whole  of  them,  and 
divided  their  goods  amongst  them, 
and  likewise  their  horses." 

1  Gent  Mag.  XXXIII.  413.  The 
loss  is  here  stated  at  the  greatly  ex- 
aggerated amount  of  £  500,000. 

BB* 


**"■  mu.. 


-  It' 


€' 


'      tliJ 


330  FRONTIER  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Chap.  XVIU, 

In  this  case,  they  said,  the  hostile  Indians  would 
refrain  from  injuring  them,  and  they  should  he  set 
at  liberty  as  soon  as  the  danger  was  past.  The 
traders  fell  into  the  snare.  They  gave  up  their 
arms,  and,  the  better  to  carry  out  the  deception, 
even  consented  to  be  bound ;  but  no  sooner  was 
this  accomplished,  than  their  treacherous  counsellors 
murdered  them  all  in  cold  blood.^  jvvi;  .'r- 

A  curious  incident,  relating  to  this  period,  is  given 
by  the  missionary  Heckewelder.  Strange  as  the 
story  may  appear,  it  is  in  strict  accordance  with  Ir- 
dian  character  and  usage,  and  perhaps  need  not  be 
rejected  as  wholly  void  of  truth.  The  name  of  the 
person  to  whom  it  relates  several  times  occurs  in 
the  manuscript  journals  and  correspondence  of  offi. 
cers  in  the  Indian  country.  A  trader  named  Chap- 
man was  made  prisoner  by  the  Indians  near  Detroit. 
For  some  time,  he  was  protected  by  the  humane  in- 
terference of  ji  Frenchman ;  but  at  length  his  cap- 
tors rescVed  to  bum  him  alive.  He  was  tied  to 
fie  stake,  nnd  the  fire  was  kindled.  As  the  heat 
grew  intolerable,  one  of  the  Indians  handed  to  him 
a  bowl  filled  with  broth.  The  wretched  man,  scorch- 
ing with  fiery  thirst,  eagerly  snatched  the  vessel, 
and  applied  it  to  his  lips ;  but  the  liquid  was  pur- 
posely made  scalding  hot.  "With  a  sudden  burst  of 
rage,  he  flung  back  the  bowl  and  its  contents  into 
the  face  of  the  Indian.  "He  is  mad!  he  is  mad!" 
shouted  the  crowd;  and  though,  the  moment  before, 
they  had  been  keenly  anticipating  the  delight  of 
seeing  him  bum,  they  hastily  put  out  the  fire,  re- 
leased him  from   the  stake,  and   set  him  at  liberty.' 


1  Loskiel,  99= 


9  W. .».   yeldcr.  Hist.  Ind.  Nat  250. 


[Chap.  XVIU, 

iians   would 

ould  be  set 

past.     The 

;    up    their 

deception, 

sooner  was 

I  counsellors 

iod,  is  given 
nge  as  the 
ice  with  Ir- 
need  not  be 
name  of  the 
DS  occurs  in 
ience  of  offi- 
named  Chap- 
near  Detroit. 
5  humane  in- 
gth  his  cap- 
was  tied  to 
As  the  heat 
mded  to  him 
man,  scorch- 
I  the  vessel, 
uid  was  pur- 
ien  burst  of 
contents  into 
lie  is  mad!" 
jment  before, 
;  delight  of 
the  fire,  re- 
n  at  liberty.' 

« 

U  Ind.  NaU  250. 


CHAP.XVm.]    FORT  tiGONIER— FOnT  BEDFORD. 


331 


Such  is  the  superstitious  respect  which  the  Indians 
entertain  for  every  form  of  insanity. 

While  the  alarming  incidents  just  mentioned  were 
occurring  at  Fort  Pitt,  the  garrison  of  Fort  Ligonier 
received  yet  more  unequivocal  tokens  of  hostility ;  for 
one  morning  a  volley  of  bullets  was  sent  among 
them,  with  no  other  e^ect,  however,  than  killing  a 
few  horses.  In  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Bedford,  several 
men  were  killed ;  on  which  the  inhabitants  were  mus- 
tered and  organized,  and  the  garrison  kept  constantly 
on  the  alert.  A  few  of  the  best  woodsmen  were 
formed  into  a  company,  dressed  and  painted  like  In- 
dians. A  party  of  the  enemy  suddenly  appeared, 
whooping  and  brandishing  their  tomahawks,  at  the 
skirt3  of  the  forest ;  on  which  these  counterfeit  sav- 
ages dashed  upon  them  at  full  gallop,  routing  them  in 
an  instant,  and  driving  them  far  though  the  woods.^ 

At  Fort  Pitt  every  preparation  was  made  for  an 
attack.  The  houses  and  cabins  outside  the  rampart 
were  levelled  to  the  ground,  and  every  morning,  at 
an  hour  before  dawp  ^^le  drum  beat,  and  the  troops 
were  oiiered  to  the  jlarm  posts.^  The  garrison, 
commanded  by  Captain  Ecuyer,  consisted  of  three 
hundred  and  thirty  soldiers,  traders,  and  back\Aoods- 


1  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  No.  1799. 
I  sliall  frequently  refer  to  the  columns 
of  this  journal,  which  are  filled  with 
lottcrs,  and  ex'^racts  from  letters,  writ- 
ten at  different  parts  of  the  frontier, 
and  containing  very  u^innte  and  au- 
thentic details  of  tii>  i  .i.^  which 
daily  occurred. 

=2  Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Fort 
Pitt,  June  16,  1763,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No. 
1801.) 

"  We  have  Alarms  from,  and 
Skirmishes  with,  the  Indians  every 
Dlly ;  but  they  have  done  lis  little 
Ilunn  as  yet    Yesterday  I  was  out 


with  a  Party  of  Mer,  when  wc  were 
fired  upon,  and  one  of  the  Serjeants 
was  killed ;  but  we  beat  off  the  In- 
dians, and  brought  the  Man  in  with 
his  Scalp  on.  Last  Night  the  Bul- 
lock Guard  was  fired  upon,  when  one 
Cow  was  killed.  We  are  obliged  to 
be  on  Duty  Night  and  Day.  The 
Indians  have  cut  off  above  100  of 
our  Traders  in  the  Woods,  besides 
z\\  our  little  Posts.  We  have  Plenty 
of  Provisions ;  and  the  Fort  is  in 
such  a  good  Posture  of  Defence,  that, 
with  God's  Assistance,  we  can  defend 
it  against  1000  Indians." 


■'^^■ 


y  * 

6'  ' 


^.M 


;  i 


332  FRONTIETl  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Chap,  y 


'TT. 


men,  and  there  were  altio  in  the  fort  about  onr'  li  u- 
dred  women,  and  a  still  greatt^"  number  of  children, 
most  of  them  belonging  to  the  families  of  settlers 
who  were  preparing  to  build  their  cabins  in  the 
neighborhood.'  .  .  i';  . 

The  sudden  and  desultory  outrages  with  which  the 
war  began,  and  which  only  served  to  put  the  garrison 
on  their  guard,  prove  that  among  the  neighboring 
Indians  there  was  no  chief  of  sufficient  power  to 
curb  their  wayward  temper,  and  force  them  to  con- 
fonn  to  any  preconcerted  plan.  The  authors  ol  the 
mischief  were  anruly  young  warriors,  fevered  with 
eagerness  to  win  the  first  scalp,  and  setting  at 
defiance  the  authority  of  their  elders.  Thr  petty 
annoyances,  far  from  abating,  continued  for  many 
successive  days,  au.l  kept  tire  garrison  in  a  state  of 
restless  ale  2:1.  It  was  highly  dangerous  to  venture 
outside  tlie  walls,  and  a  few  who  attempted  it  were 
riot  and  scalpr'^  by  lurking  Indians.  "They  have 
the  impudence,"  "lites  an  officer,  "to  fire  all  night 
at  our  sentinels ;  nor  wtre  these  attacks  confined  to 
the  night,  for  even  t'uring  the  day  no  man  willingly 
exposed  his  head  above  tlie  rampart.  The  surround- 
ing woods  were  known  to  ^  full  of  prowling  Indians, 
whose  number  seemed  daily  increasing,  though  as 
yet  they  had  made  no  attempt  at  a  general  attack. 
At  length,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  twenty-second  of 
June,  a  party  of  them  appeared  at  the  farthest  ex- 
tremity of  the  cleared  lands  behind  the  fort,  driving 
off  the  horses  which  were  grazing  there,  and  killing 
the  cattle.  No  sooner  was  this  accomplished  tlian 
a  general  fire  was  opened   upon  the  fo^t  from  every 

1  MS.  Letter  —  Ecuyer  to  Bouquet,  June  5. 


?Si 


8.  tCHAP.x  ni. 


CiiAr.  XVIII] 


INDIAN  ADVICE. 


•f /..-  ' 


333 


side  at  once,  though  at  so  great  a  distance  that  only 
two  men  were  killed.  The  garrison  replied  by  a  dis- 
charge of  howitzers,  the  shells  of  wliich,  bursting  in 
the  midst  of  the  Indians,  greatly  amazed  and  dis- 
concerted them.  As  it  grew  dark,  their  fire  slackened, 
though,  throughout  the  night,  the  flash  of  guns  was 
scon  at  frequent  intervals,  followed  by  the  whooping 
of  the  invisible  assailants. 

At  nine  o'clock  on  the  following  morning,  several 
Indians  approached  the  fort  with  the  utmost  confi- 
dence, and  took  their  stand  close  to  the  outside  of 
the  ditch,  where  one  of  them,  a  Delaware,  named 
the  Turtle's  Heart,  addressed  the  garrison  as  fol- 
lows :  — 

"  My  brothers,  we  that  stand  here  are  your  friends ; 
but  we  have  bad  news  to  tell  you.  Six  great  nations 
of  Indians  have  taken  up  the  hatchet,  and  cut  off  all 
the  English  garrisons,  excepting  yours.  They  are 
now  on  their  way  to  destroy  you  also. 

"My  brothers,  we  are  your  friends,  and  we  wish 
to  save  your  lives.  What  we  desire  you  to  do  is 
this :  You  must  leave  this  fort,  with  all  your  women 
and  children,  and  go  down  to  the  English  settle- 
ments, where  you  will  be  safe.  There  are  many  bad 
Indians  already  here;  but  we  will  protect  you  from 
them.  You  must  go  at  once,  because  if  you  wait 
till  the  six  great  nations  arrive  here,  you  will  all  be 
killed,  aiKl  we  can  do  nothing  to  protect  you." 

To  this  proposal,  by  which  the  Indians  hoped  to 
gain  a  safe  and  easy  possession  of  the  fort.  Captain 
Ecuyer  made  the  following  reply.  The  vein  of  hu- 
mor perceptible  in  it  may  serve  to  indicate  that  he 
was  under  no  great  apprehension  for  the  safety  of 
his  garrison. 


g| 


f  * 


u 


mi 


1*1 


■i?. 


t^'H  FUONTreR  FORTS   AND   SETTLEMENTS.     [Chap.  XVIII. 

"  My  brothers,  vvc  arc  very  grateful  for  your  kind- 
ness, tl\ough  we  are  convinced  that  you  must  be 
mistaken  in  what  you  have  told  us  about  the  forts 
being  captured.  As  for  ourselves,  we  have  plenty  of 
provisions,  and  are  able  to  keep  the  fort  against  all 
the  nations  of  Indians  that  may  dare  to  attack  it. 
We  are  very  well  off  in  this  place,  and  we  mean  to 
stay  here.        j  ,      %       .      .i*    'iv      ■- 

"  My  brothers,  as  you  have  shown  yourselves  such 
true  friends,  we  feel  bound  in  gratitude  to  inform 
you  that  an  anny  of  six  thousand  English  will  short- 
ly arrive  here,  and  that  another  army  of  three  thou- 
sand is  gone  up  the  lakes,  to  punish  the  Ottawas 
and  Ojibwas.  A  third  has  gone  to  the  frontiers  of 
Virginia,  where  they  will  be  joined  by  your  enemies, 
the  Cherokees  and  Catawbas,  who  are  coming  here 
to  destroy  you.  Therefore  take  pity  on  your  women 
and  children,  and  get  out  of  the  way  as  soon  as 
possible.  We  have  told  you  this  in  confidence,  out 
of  our  great  solicitude  lest  any  of  you  should  be  hurt  ; 
and  we  hope  that  you  will  not  tell  the  other  In- 
dians, lest  they  should  escape  from  our  vengeance."' 

This  politic  invention  of  the  three  armies  had  an 
excellent  effect,  and  so  startled  the  Indians,  that,  on 
the  next  day,  most  of  them  withdrew  from  the  neigh- 
borhood, and  went  to  meet  a  great  body  of  warriors, 
who  were  advancmg  from  the  westward  to  attack 
the  fort.  On  the  afternoon  of  the  twenty-sixth,  a 
soldier  named  Gray,  belonging  to  the  garrison  of 
Presqu'Isle,  came  in  with  the  report  that,  more  than 
a  week  before,  that  little  post  had  been  furiously 
attacked   by  upwards   of  two   hundred   Indians  from 


S: 


■iM- 


1  MS.  Report  of  Alexander  M'Kee,  deputy  agent  for  Indian  affairs  at 
Fort  Pitt. 


.  [CiiAP.xvin, 


Chap.  XVin.] 


DISASTROUS  TIDINGS.  *'' 


335 


Indian  affairs  at 


Detroit,  that  they  had  assailed  it  'or  three  days,  re- 
peatedly setting  it  on  fire,  and  ha('  «*..  length  under- 
niined  it  so  completely,  that  the  garrison  was  forced  to 
capitulate,  on  condition  of  being  allowed  to  retire  in 
safety  to  Fort  Pitt.  No  sooner,  however,  had  they  left 
their  shelter,  than  the  Indians  fell  upon  them,  and, 
as  Gray  declared,  butchered  them  all,  except  himself 
and  one  other  man,  who  darted  into  the  woods,  and 
escaped  amid  the  confusion,  hearing  behind  them,  as 
they  fled,  the  screams  of  their  murdered  comrades. 
This  account  proved  erroneous,  as  the  garrison  were 
carried  by  their  captors  in  safety  to  Detroit.  Some 
time  after  this  event.  Captain  Dalzell's  detachment, 
on  their  way  to  Detroit,  stopped  at  the  place,  and 
foimd,  close  to  the  ruined  fort,  the  hair  of  several  of 
the  men,  which  had  been  shorn  off,  as  a  preliminary 
step  in  the  process  of  painting  and  bedecking  them 
like  Indian  warriors.  From  this  it  appears  that  some 
of  the  unfortunate  soldiers  were  adopted  on  the  spot 
into  the  tribes  of  their  conquerors.  In  a  previous 
chapter,  a  detailed  account  has  been  given  of  the 
defence  of  Presqu'Isle,  and  its  final  capture. 

Gray  informed  Captain  Ecuyer  that,  a  few  days 
before  the  attack  on  the  garrison,  they  had  seen  a 
schooner  on  the  lake,  approaching  from  the  west- 
ward. She  had  sent  a  boat  on  shore  with  the  tidings 
that  Detroit  had  been  beleaguered,  for  more  than  six 
weeks,  by  many  hundred  Indians,  and  that  a  detach- 
ment of  ninety-six  men  had  been  attacked  near  that 
place,  of  whom  only  about  thirty  had  escaped,  the 
rest  being  either  killed  on  the  spot  or  put  to  death 
by  sloAV  torture.  The  panic-stricken  soldier,  in  his 
flight  from  Presqu'Isle,  had  passed  the  spots  where 
lately  had  stood   the   little   forts  of  Le  Boeuf  and 


■■•*-*, 

' '  •.  1 

fc,  ««•»  *t.  i 

■*•..>, 

.^' 

-    ,; 

»ii  : 


t 


!^    • 


1 

''1 

336 


FRONTIER  FORTS  AND  SETTLEirENTS.    [Chap.  XVHI. 


Venango.  Both  were  burnt  level  with  the  ground, 
and  he  sumiised  that  the  whole  of  their  wretched 
garrisons  had  fallen  victims.*  The  disaster  proved 
less  fatal  than  his  fears  led  him  to  suspect;  for,  on 
the  same  day  on  which  he  arrived,  Fnsign  Price,  the 
officer  commanding  at  Le  Bocuf,  was  seen  approach- 
ing along  the  bank  of  the  Alleghany,  followed  by 
seven  haggard  and  half-famished  soldiers.^  On  the 
evening  of  the  eighteenth,  a  great  multitude  of  In- 
dians had  surrounded  his  post,  the  available  defences 
of  which,  at  that  time,  consisted  of  only  one  block- 
house. Showering  bidlets  and  fire-arrows  against  it, 
they  soon  set  it  in  flames ;  and  at  midnight,  in  spite 
of  every  effort,  the  whole  upper  part  of  the  building 
was  in  a  light  blaze.  The  assailants  now  gathered 
in  a  half  ch'cle  before  the  entrance,  eagerly  expect- 
ing the  moment  when  the  inmates,  stifled  amid  flame 
and    smoke,    should    rush    ovit    upon    certain    death. 


1  MS.  Letter  —  Ecuycr  to  Bou- 
quet, June  2G. 

2  F'jxtract  from  a  Letter  —  Fort 
Pitt,  June  2G,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1802.) 

"  Thia  Morning,  Ensign  Price,  ot 
the  Royal  Americans,  with  Part  of 
his  Garrison,  arrived  here,  being  sep- 
arated from  the  rest  in  the  niglit.  -  - 
Tlie  Enemy  attacked  his  Post,  and 
set  it  on  Fire,  and  while  they  watched 
the  Door  of  the  House,  he  got  out 
on  tlio  other  side,  and  the  Indians 
continued  tiring  a  long  Time  after- 
wards, imagining  that  the  Garrison 
was  in  it,  and  that  they  were  con- 
sumed with  tlip  House.  —  He  touched 
at  Venango,  found  tlie  Fort  burnt  to 
tlie  Ground,  and  saw  one  of  our  Ex- 
presses lying  killed  on  the  Road. 

"  Four  o'clock  in  tl)e  Afternoon. 
Just  now  came  in  one  of  tlif  Soldiers 
frt)m  Prcsquo  I^k-,  who  says,  Mr. 
('Iiristie  fo'.jf^jit  two  Days ;  that  the 
PiUcm''  Fifty  times  set  Fire  to  the 
Blockhouse,  but  that  they  as  often 


put  it  out:  That  they  then  under- 
lined the  House,  and  was  ready 
to  blow  it  up,  when  they  offered  Mr. 
Christie  Terms,  who  accepted  thoin, 
viz.,  That  he,  and  his  Garrison,  wan 
to  bo  conducted  to  tliis  Place.  —  Tlie 
Soldier  also  says,  ho  suspected  they 
intended  to  put  tliem  all  to  Deatli; 
and  tliat  on  hearing  a  Woman  scream 
out,  lie  supposed  tliey  were  murdcrinj; 
her ;  upon  which  he  and  another  Sol- 
dier came  immediately  off,  but  knows 
nothing  of  the  rest :  That  the  Ve.s.sel 
from  Niagara  was  in  Sight,  but  \w- 
lieves  she  had  no  Provisions,  as  the 
Indians  told  them  they  had  cut  off 
Little  Niagara,  and  destroyed  800 
Barrels :  And  that  he  tinnk.s,  by 
wliat  he  saw,  Venango  had  ciipitu- 
lated." 

The  soldier  liere  spoken  of  was 
no  'loubt  Gray,  who  was  mentioned 
abwve,  though  his  story  is  somewhat 
differently  given  in  t'ae  letter  of  Cap- 
tain Ecuycr,  just  cited. 


^ 


[Chap.  XVHI. 


Ciur.  XVIII.]  DESTRTTCTION  OF  VENANGO. 


337 


But  Price  and  his  followers,  with  the  energy  of  des- 
peration, hewed  an  opening  through  the  massive  tim- 
bers which  formed  the  back  wall  of  the  blockhouse, 
and  escaped  unperceived  into  the  dark  woods  behind. 
For  some  time,  they  continued  to  hear  the  reports 
of  the  Indian  guns,  as  these  painted  demons  were 
still  leaping  and  yelling  in  front  of  the  blazing 
building,  firing  into  the  loopholes,  and  exulting  in 
the  thought  that  their  enemies  were  suffering  the 
agonies  of  death  within.  The  fugitives  pressed  on- 
ward through  the  whole  of  the  next  day,  until,  at 
one  o'clock  of  the  succeeding  night,  they  came  to 
the  spot  where  Fort  Venango  had  stood.  Nothing 
remained  of  it  but  piles  of  glowing  embers,  among 
wliich  lay  the  half-consumed  bodies  of  its  hapless 
garrison.  They  continued  their  journey;  but  six  of 
the  party  sooxi  gave  out,  and  were  left  behind  in 
the  woods,  while  the  remainder  were  half  dead  with 
fear,  hunger,  and  exhaustion,  before  their  eyes  Avere 
gladdened  by  the  friendly  walls  of  Fort  Pitt.' 

Not  a  man  remained  alive  to  tell  the  fate  of  Ve- 
nango; and  it  was  not  until  some  time  after  that  an 
Indian,  who  was  present  at  its  destruction,  described 
the  scene  to  Sir  William  Johnson.  A  large  body  of 
Senecas  gained  entrance  under  pretence  of  friendship, 
then  closed  the  gates,  fell  upon  the  garrison,  and 
butchered  them  all  except  the  commanding  oificer, 
Lieutenant  Gordon,  whom  they  tortured  over  a  slow 
fire  for  several  successive  nights,  till  he  expired. 
This  done,  they  burnt  the  place  to  the  ground,  and 
departed.^ 


jrt*. 


Ria. ,. 


■  m' 


1  MS.  Letter  —  Price  to  Bouquet,  years  since,  some  traces  of  Fort  Ve- 

June  27.  nango  were  yet  visible.     The  follow- 

-  MS.  Johnson  Papers.    Not  many  ing  description  of  tliem  is  from  the 

43  cc 


I 


338 


FRONTIER  FORTS  AND   SETTLEM:^NTS.    [Chap.  XVIII. 


While  Le  Bccuf  and  Venango  were  thus  assailed, 
Fort  Ligonicr  was  also  attacked  by  a  large  body  of 
Indians,  who  fired  upon  it  with  great  fury  and  per- 
tinacity, but  were  beaten  off  after  a  hard  day's 
fighting.  Fort  Augusta,  on  the  Susquehanna,  was 
at  the  same  time  menpced;  but  the  garrison  behig 
strengthened  by  a  timely  reenforcement,  the  Indians 
abandoned  their  purpose.  Carlisle,  Bedford,  and  the 
small  intermediate  posts,  all  experienced  some  effects 
of  savage  hostility,*  while  among  the  settlers,  whose 
houses  woie  scattered  throughout  the  adjacent  val- 
leys, outrages  wore  perpetrated,  and  sufferings  en- 
dured, which  defy  all  attempt  at  description. 

At  Fort  Pitt,  every  preparation  was  made  to  repel 
the  attack  which  was  hourly  expected.  A  part  of 
tlie  rampart,  undermined  by  the  spring  floods,  had 
fallen  into  the  ditch;  but,  by  dint  of  great  labor,  f'lis 
injury  was  repaired.  A  line  of  palisades  was  erec  id 
along   the  ramparts,   the  barracks   were    made    shot- 


Historical  C  "ections  of  Pennsylva- 
nia:— 

"  Its  ruins  oiainly  indicate  its  dc- 
stniction  by  fire.  Burnt  stone,  melted 
gltss  and  iron,  leave  no  doubt  of 
this.  All  through  the  groundworks 
are  to  be  found  great  quantities  of 
mouldering  bones.  Amongst  the 
ruins,  knives,  gun-barrels,  locks,  and 
musket-balls  have  been  frequently 
found,  and  still  continue  to  be  found. 
About  the  centre  of  the  area  arc  seen 
the  ruins  of  the  magazine,  in  which, 
with  what  truth  I  cannot  vouch,  is 
said  to  be  a  well.  The  same  tradi- 
tion al  a  adds,  '  And  in  that  well 
there  is  a  cannon;'  but  no  examina- 
tion has  been  made  for  it." 

'  Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Fort 
Bedford,  June  ,'JO,  1763,  (Penn,  Gaz. 
No.  1802.) 

"T'lifl  Moming  a  Party  of  the 
Enemy  p'tacked  fifteen  Persons,  wlio 


were  mowing  in  Mr.  Croghaii'i 
Field,  within  a  Mile  of  the  Garrison ; 
and  News  is  brought  in  of  two  Men 
being  killed.  —  Eight  o'clock.  Two 
Men  are  brought  in,  alive,  toma- 
hawked and  scalped  moic  than  Iliilf 
the  Head  over  —  Our  Parade  just 
now  presents  a  Scene  of  bloody  and 
savage  Cruelty  ;  three  Men,  two  of 
which  are  in  the  Bloom  of  Life,  tiie 
other  an  old  man,  lying  scalped  (two 
of  them  still  alive)  thereon:  Any 
thing  feigned  in  the  most  fabulous 
Romance,  cannot  parallel  the  horrid 
Sight  now  before  mo;  the  Gashes 
the  i)oor  People  bear  are  most  terri- 
fying. —  Ten  o'clock.  They  are  jiist 
expired  —  One  of  thcni,  after  being 
tomahawked  and  scalped,  ran  a  littk' 
way,  and  got  on  a  Loft  in  Mr.  Cro- 
ghan's  House,  where  he  lay  till  fouiid 
by  a  Party  of  the  Garrison." 


feasPi  »4ii.fcS.'  ' '; 


i- 

4 


S.    [CiiAP.  XVIII, 


Chap.  XVUL] 


DANGER  OF  FORT  PITT. 


339 


proof,  to  protect  the  women  and  children ;  and  as 
the  interior  buildings  were  all  of  wood,  a  rude  fire 
engine  was  constructed,  to  extinguish  any  flames 
which  might  be  kindled  by  the  burning  arrows  of 
the  Indians.  Several  weeks,  however,  elapsed  with- 
out any  determined  attack  from  the  enemy,  who 
were  engaged  in  their  bloody  work  among  the  settle- 
ments and  smaller  posts.  From  the  beginning  of 
July  until  towards  its  close,  notliing  occurred  except 
a  series  of  petty  and  futile  attacks,  by  which  the 
Indians  abundantly  exhibited  their  malicious  inten- 
tions, without  doing  harm  to  the  garrison.  During 
the  whole  of  this  time,  the  communication  with  the 
settlements  was  completely  cut  off,  so  that  :.io  letters 
were  written  from  the  fort,  or,  at  all  events,  none 
reached  their  destination ;  and  we  are  therefore  left 
to  depend  upon  a  few  meagre  official  reports,  as  our 
only  sources  of  information. 

On  the  twenty-sixth  of  July,  a  small  party  of  In- 
dians was  seen  approaching  the  gate,  displaying  a 
flag,  which  one  of  them  had  some  time  before  re- 
ceived as  a  present  from  the  English  commander. 
On  the  strength  of  this  token,  they  were  admitted, 
and  proved  to  be  chiefs  of  distinction;  among  whom 
were  Shingas,  Turtle's  Heart,  and  others,  who  had 
hitherto  maintained  an  appearance  of  friendship. 
Being  admitted  to  a  council,  one  of  them  addressed 
Captain  Ecuyer  and  his  officers  to  the  following 
effect :  — 

"Brothers,  what  we  are  about  to  say  comes  from 
ou):  hearts,  and  not  from  our  lips. 

"Brothers,  we  wish  to  hold  fast  the  chain  of 
friendship  —  that  ancient  chain  which  our  forefathers 
held   with    their  brethren   the    English.     You    have 


«s:. 

i 

art* 

b. 

t 

',..'    M- 

k 

'■-■•f  ,  ■  ''• 

r 

''  ■      r 

/■  ',>       ',     ' 

'< 

« «      .    ■■ 

■-'.I 

i 


I    ! 


340 


FRONTIER  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Chap.  XVUI. 


let  your  end  of  the  chain  fall  to  the  ground,  hut 
ours  is  still  fast  within  our  hands.  Why  do  you 
complain  that  our  young  men  have  fired  at  your 
soldiers,  and  killed  your  cattle  and  your  horses? 
You  yourselves  are  the  cause  of  this.  You  marclicd 
your  annies  into  our  country,  and  built  forts  here, 
though  we  told  you,  again  and  again,  that  we  wished 
you  to  remove.  My  brothers,  this  land  is  ours,  and 
not  yours. 

"  My  brothers,  two  days  ago  we  received  a  great 
belt  of  wampum  from  the  Ottawas  of  Detroit,  and 
the  message  they  sent  us  was  in  these  words :  — 

" '  Grandfathers  the  Delawares,  by  this  belt  we 
inform  you  that  in  a  short  time  we  intend  to  pass, 
in  a  very  great  body,  through  your  country,  on  our 
way  to  strike  the  English  at  the  forks  of  the  Ohio, 
Grandfathers,  you  know  us  to  be  a  headstrong 
people.  We  are  determined  to  stop  at  nothing,  and 
as  we  expect  to  be  very  hungry,  we  will  seize  and 
cat  up  eveiy  thing  that  comes  in  our  way.'  * 

"Brothers,  you  have  heard  the  words  of  the  Ot- 
tawas.  If  you  leave  this  place  immediately,  and  go 
home  to  your  wives  and  <"hildren,  no  harm  will 
come  of  it;  but  if  you  stay,  you  must  blame  your- 
selves alone  for  what  may  happen.  Therefore  we 
desire   you  to  remove." 

To  the  Yciy  just  and  reasonable  statement  of 
wrongs  contained  in  this  speech,  Captain  Ecuyer  re- 
plied, by  urging  the  shallow  pretence  tliat  the  forts 
were  built  for  the  pui*pose  of  supplying  the  Indians 
witl..  clothes  and  amminiition.  lie  then  absolutely 
refusi'd    to    leave    the    place.      "  I    have,"    he    said, 


I  This  is  a  common  Indian  metaplior.    To  destroy  an  enemy  is,  in  tlioir 
phnwe,  to  eat  him  up. 


i     '  ,?;! 


\ 


S.    [Chap.XVUI. 


CuAP.XVm.]     THREATS  OF  THE  COMMANDANT. 


341 


"warriors,  provision,  and  ammunition,  to  defend  it 
three  years  against  all  the  Indians  in  the  woods;  and 
we  shall  never  abandon  it  as  long  as  a  "white  man 
lives  in  America.  I  despise  the  Ottawas,  and  am 
very  much  surprised  at  our  brothers  the  Delawares, 
for  proiK)sing  to  us  to  leave  this  place  and  go  home. 
This  is  our  home.  You  have  attacked  us  without 
reason  or  provocation ;  you  have  murdered  and  plun- 
dered our  warriors  and  traders;  you  have  taken  our 
horses  and  cattle;  and  at  the  same  time  you  tell 
us  your  hearts  are  good  towards  your  brethren  the 
English.  Ho',^  can  I  have  faith  in  youl  Therefore, 
now,  brothel  s,  I  will  advise  you  to  go  home  to  your 
towns,  and  take  care  of  your  wives  and  children. 
Moreover,  I  tell  you  that  if  any  of  you  appear 
again  about  this  fort,  I  will  throw  bombshells, 
which  will  burst  and  blow  you  to  atoms,  and  fire 
cannoii  among  you,  loaded  with  a  whole  bag  full  of 
bullets.  Therefore  take  care,  for  I  don't  want  to 
hurt  you." ' 

The  chiefs  departed  much  displeased  with  their 
reception.  Though  the  course  pursued  by  Captain 
Ecuyer  was  a  wise  and  justifiable  one,  and  though 
the  building  of  forts  in  the  Indian  country  could 
not  in  this  instance  be  charged  as  a  crime,  except 
by  the  most  overstrained  casuistry,  yet  we  cannot 
refrain  from  sympathizing  with  the  intolerable  hard- 
ship to  which  the  progress  of  civilization  subjected 
the  unfortunate  tenants  of  the  wilderness,  and  which 
goes  far  to  extenuate  the  perfidy  and  cruelty  which 
marked  their  conduct  throughout  the  whole  course 
of  the  war. 


■»« 


i 


n  enemy  is,  in  tlioir 


MS.  Report  of  Conference  witli  tlio  Indians  Pt  Fort  Pitt,  July  26, 1763. 


cC 


,flB«^ 


342  FRONTIER  FORTS  AND  SETTLEMENTS.    [Chap.  XVIII, 

Disappointed  of  gaining  a  bloodless  possession  of 
the  fort,  the  Indians  now,  for  the  first  time,  began  a 
general  attack.  On  the  night  succeeding  the  confer- 
ence, they  approached  in  great  multitudes,  under 
cover  of  the  darkness,  and  completely  surrounded  it; 
many  of  them  crawling  beneath  the  banks  of  the 
two  rivers,  which  ran  close  to  the  rampart,  and,  with 
incredible  perseverance,  digging,  wi..h  their  knives, 
holes  in  which  they  were  completely  sheltered  from 
the  fire  of  the  fort.  On  one  side,  the  whole  bank 
was  lined  with  these  burrows,  from  each  of  which 
a  bullet  or  an  arro\7  was  shot  out  whenever  a  sol- 
dier  chanced  to  expose  his  head.  At  daybreak,  a 
general  fire  was  opened  from,  every  side,  and  contin- 
ued without  intermission  until  night,  and  through 
several  succeeding  days.  Meanwhile,  the  women  and 
children  were  pent  up  in  the  (;rowded  barracks,  terror- 
stricken  at  the  horrible  din  of  the  assailants,  and 
watching  the  fire-arrows  as  they  came  sailing  over 
the  parapet,  and  lodging  against  the  roofs  and  sides 
of  the  buildings.  In  every  instance,  the  fire  they 
kindled  was  extinguished.  One  of  the  garrison  was 
killed,  and  seven  wounded.  Among  the  latter  was 
Captain  Ecuyer,  who,  freely  exposing  himself,  re- 
ceived an  arrow  in  the  leg.  At  length,  an  event 
hereafter  to  be  described  put  an  end  to  the  attack, 
and  drew  off  the  assailants  from  the  neighborhood 
of  the  fort,  to  the  unspeakable  relief  of  the  har- 
assed soldiers,  exhausted  as  they  were  by  several 
days  of  imintennitted  vigilance.^ 


.  I' 


1  Extract  from  a   MS.  Letter  —  without  further  Opposition  tlmn  Scnt- 

Colonel  Bouquet  to  Sir  J.  Amherst.  tered  Shots  alonp  the  Road. 

"Fort  Pitt,  11th  Aug.  1763.  "The  Delawnr.N,  Shawnese,  Wi- 

"  h'lT :  andots,  &  Mingfoi  h  liad  closely  Beset, 

"  We    Arrived    here    Yesterday,  nd  Attacked  this  Fort  from  Uic  '^"tli 


I       t- 


'S.    [Chap.  XVIII. 


Chap.  XVIH.] 


ATTACK  ON  FORT  PITT. 


343 


July,  to  the  First  Instant,  when  they 
Quitted  it  to  March  against  us. 

"  The  Boldness  of  those  Savages 
is  Jiardly  Credible;  they  had  taken 
Post  under  the  Banlcs  of  Both  Riv- 
ers, Close  to  the  Fort,  where  Digging 
Holes,  they  kept  an  Incessant  Fire, 
and  threw  Fire  Arrows :  They  are 
frood  Marksmen,  and  though  our 
People  were  under  Cover,  they  Killed 
one,  &  Wounded  seven.  —  Captain 
Ecuyer  is  Wounded  in  the  Leg  by 
an  Anew. — I  Would  not  Do  Justice 
to  that  Officer,  shouid  I  omit  to  In- 
form Your  Excellency,  that,  without 


Engineer,  or  any  other  Artificers 
than  a  few  Ship  Wrights,  he  has 
Raised  a  Parapet  of  Logs  round  tlie 
Fort,  above  the  Old  One,  which  hav- 
ing not  been  Finished,  was  too  Low, 
and  Enfiladed;  He  has  Traised  the 
Whole ;  Palisadoed  the  Inside  of  tlie 
Aria,  Constructed  a  Fire  Engine ; 
and  in  short,  has  taken  all  Precau- 
tions, which  Art  and  Judgement 
could  suggest  for  the  Preservation 
of  this  Post,  open  before  on  the  three 
sides,  which  had  suffered  by  tlie 
Floods." 


■  -mm. 

%.» 

.'*Kifc, 

hi' 

4«*k.*^ 

'••«■»■«•-,,. 

1 

»«  /;', 

t 

^ 

.■:>   ■  ; 

position  than  Scat- 
the  Road. 
•H,  Shawnese,  Wi- 
I  had  closely  Beset, 
Fort  from  tlie  27th 


1 


1 

t 

t 

9^1 

t 

iff 

w 

v^ 

CHAPTER    XIX. 


THE   WAR   ON   THE   BORDERS. 


Along  the  western  frontiers  of  Pennsylvania,  Mai^- 
land,  and  Virginia,  terror  reigned  supreme.  The  In- 
dian scalping-parties  were  ranging  every  where,  lay- 
ing  waste  the  sicttlements,  destroying  the  harvests, 
and  butchering  men,  women,  and  children.,  with  ruth- 
less fury.  Many  hundreds  of  wretched  fugitives 
flocked  for  refuge  to  Carlisle  and  the  other  towns 
of  the  border,  bringing  tales  of  inconceivable  horror. 
Strong  parties  of  armed  men,  who  went  out  to  rec- 
onnoitre the  country,  found  every  habitation  reduced 
to  cinders,  and  the  half-burned  bodies  of  the  inmates 
lying  among  the  smouldering  ruins;  while  here  and 
there  was  seen  some  miserable  wretch,  scalped  and 
tomahawked,  but  still  alive  and  conscious.  One 
writing  from  the  midst  of  these  scenes  declares  that, 
in  his  opinion,  a  thousand  families  were  driven  from 
their  homes ;  that,  on  both  sides  of  the  Susquehanna, 
the  woods  were  filled  with  fugitives,  without  shelter 
and  without  food ;  and  that,  unless  the  havoc  were 
speedily  checked,  the  western  part  of  Pennsylvania 
would  be  totally  deserted,  and  Lancaster  become  the 
frontier  town.' 

While  these  scenes  were  enacted  on  the  borders 


s 


«' *--a5r»IJ  j  r  > 


J  Pcnn.  Gaz.  Nos.  1805-1809. 


A 


'SS^I^^? 


CuAP.XIX.]    FEEBLE  RESOURCES  OF  THE  ENGLISH. 


345 


Ivania,  Mai^- 
me.  The  In- 
y  where,  lay- 
the  harvests, 
;n.,  with  ruth- 
hed  fugitives 
other  towns 
ivable  horror, 
t  out  to  rec- 
ation  reduced 
f  the  inmates 
tiile  here  and 
,  scalped  and 
scious.  One 
declares  that, 
3  driven  from 
Susquehanna, 
thout  shelter 
D  havoc  were 
Pennsylvania 
r  become  the 

I  the  borders 


k 


of  Pennsylvania  and  the  more  southern  provinces, 
the  settlors  in  the  valley  of  the  Mohawk,  and  even 
along  the  Hudson,  were  menaced  with  destruction. 
Had  not  the  Six  Nations  been  kept  tranquil  by  the 
strenuous  exertions  of  Sir  AVilliam  Johnson,  results 
must  have  ensued  too  disastrous  to  contemplate. 
The  Senecas  and  a  few  of  the  Cayugas  were  the 
only  members  of  the  confederacy  who  took  part  in 
the  war.  Venango,  as  we  have  seen,  was  destroyed 
by  a  party  of  Senecas,  who  soon  after  made  a  feeble 
attack  upon  Niagara.  They  blockaded  it,  i'or  a  few 
days,  with  no  other  effect  than  that  of  confining  the 
garrison  within  the  walls,  and,  soon  despairing  of 
success,  abandoned  the  attempt. 

In  the  mean   time,  tidings  of  disaster  on  disaster 
came  in  from   the  westward.     The  siege  of  Detroit, 
and   tlie    capture    of  post   after   post,  followed   ea«jli 
other    in    quick    succession,   until   it   became    knowii 
that  nine    forts    had   ftJlen    into    the    hands    of   the 
enemy;   and   Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst  was  forced  to  the 
reluctant   conclusion   that  the  tribes  had  risen  in  a 
general   insurrection.     The   regions   lately  won   from 
the  French,  with   so  much  blood  and   treasure,  were 
suddenly  snatched  from  the  hands  of  the  conquerors; 
and  this,  too,  at   a   time   when,  from    the   want   of 
troops,  it  was  extremely  difficult  to  retrieve  the  loss. 
The  few  regiments  lately  arrived  from  the  West  In- 
dies were   so   reduced  that  most  of  them  numbered 
less    than    a   hundred   feeble   and   sickly   men.     By 
combming  these  fragments,  and  collecting  from  the 
less  important  garrisons,  and  even  from  the  hospitals, 
every   soldier   capable  of  bearing   a  musket,  a  small 
force  was  with  difficulty  brought   together.     All  that 
coidd  immediately  be  done  was  to  strengthen  the  posts 
44 


346 


TlIK  WAR  ON  THE  BORDERS, 


[Chap.  XIX. 


''/.'A 

1 
i 

1 
1 

*l  ,;i!  I' 


I 


S<1 


which  still  held  out,  reserving  more  active  operations 
for  the  future.  A  reenforcement  was  accordingly 
thrown  into  Niagara,  and  a  detachment,  under  Ca|)- 
tain  Dalzell,  sent  up  to  Detroit.  The  unfortunate 
issue  of  this  expedition,  the  sally  in  the  niglit 
against  the  camp  of  Pontiac,  the  surprise  and  do- 
feat  of  the  English,  and  the  death  of  Dalzell  havt 
been  already  described. 

While  these  movements  were  made  'n  the  direci'' 
of  Detroit,  it  was  equally  necessary  to  send  troi 
to  Fort  Pitt,  as  that  i)ost,  though,  its  commanui 
had  assured  the  Indians  to  the  contrary,  was  but  ill 
supplied  with  provision.  With  the  first  news  of 
hostilities  in  that  quarter,  orders  were  therefore  sent 
to  Colonel  Bouquet,  who  commanded  at  Philadel- 
phia, to  assemble  as  large  a  force  as  possible,  and 
cross  the  AUeghanies  with  a  convoy  of  provision 
and  ammunition.  With  every  effort,  no  more  than 
five  hundred  men  could  be  collected  for  this  service. 
They  consisted  chiefly  of  Highlanders  of  the  42d 
llegiment,  which  had  suffered  less  than  most  of  the 
other  corps,  from  West  Indian  exposure.  Having 
sent  agents  to  the  frontier  to  collect  horses,  wagons, 
and  supplies,  Bouquet  soon  after  followed  with  the 
troops,  and  reached  Carlisle  about  the  first  of  July. 
He  found  the  whole  country  in  a  panic.  Every 
building  in  the  fort,  every  house,  barn,  and  hovel  in 
the  little  town,  was  crowded  with  the  families  of 
settlers,  driven  from  their  homes  by  the  terror  of 
the  Indian  tomahawk.  None  of  the  enem),  how- 
ever, had  yet  appeared  in  the  neighborhood,  and 
the  people  flattered  themselves  that  their  ravages 
would  be  confined  to  the  other  side  of  the  moun- 
tains.     Whoever    ventured    to    predict    the    contrary 


[CuAP.  XIX. 

ivc  operations 
i  accord  mgly 
t,  under  Ca|)- 
c  unfortuiuite 
n  the  niglit 
)rise  and  dc- 
Dalzell    have 

.  the  direcii' 
f   send   troi 
;s   commanu 
f,  was  but  ill 
irst    news    of 
therefore  sent 

at   Philadd- 

possible,  and 
of  provision 
10  more  than 
r  this  service. 
of  the  42(1 
L  most  of  the 
ure.  Having 
orses,  wagons, 
iwed  witli  the 

first  of  July, 
panic.     Every 

and  hovel  in 
e  families  of 
the   terror  of 

enemy,  how- 
iborhood,  and 
their  ravages 
of  the  moun- 

the    contrary 


Chap.  XIX.] 


ALARM  AT  CARLISLE. 


347 


drow    ii])on    himself    the    indignation    of    the    whole 
community. 

On  Sunday,  the  third  of  July,  an  incident  occurred 
which  redoubled  the  alarm.  A  soldier,  riding  express 
fioni  Fort  Pitt,  galloped  into  the  town,  and  alighted 
to  Nt.iter  his  horse  at  the  well  in  tlu;  centre  of  the 
lace.  A  crowd  of  countrymen  were  instantly  about 
hin'  '^ager  to  hear  the  news.  "Pn  squ'Isle,  Le  Bccuf, 
1  V'enango  are  taken,  and  the  Indwi.;-,  ill  be  here 
1."  Such  was  the  substance  of  cK%"  >:  an's  reply, 
.mounting  in  haste,  he  rode  on  to  make  his  re- 
at  the  camp  of  Bouquet.*  All  was  now  con- 
sternation and  excitement.  Messengers  hastened  out 
to  spread  the  tidings,  and  every  road  and  path- 
way leading  into  Carlisle  was  beset  with  the  flying 
settlers,  flocking  thither  for  refuge.  Soon  rumors 
were  heard  that  the  Indians  were  come.  Some  of 
the  fugitives  had  seen  the  smoke  of  burning  houses 
rising  from  the  valleys,  and  these  reports  were  fearful- 
ly confirmed  by  the  appearance  of  miserable  wretches, 
who,  half  frantic  with  grief  and  dismay,  had  fled 
from  the  sight  of  blazing  dwellings  and  slaughtered 
families.  A  party  of  the  inhabitants  armed  them- 
selves and  went  out,  to  warn  the  living  and  bury  the 
dead.  Reaching  Shearman's  Valley,  they  found  fields 
laid  waste,  stacked  wheat  on  fire,  and  the  houses  yet 
in  flames,  and  they  grew  sick  with  horror,  at  seeing  a 
group  of  hogs  tearing  and  devouring  t1ie  bodies  of  the 
dead,^  As  they  advanced  up  the  valley,  every  thing 
betokened  the  recent  presence  of  the  enemy,  while  col- 
umns of  smoke,  rising  among  the  siurrounding  moun- 
tains, showed  how  general  was  the  work  of  destruction. 


<» 


1  Penn.  Hist.  Coll.  267. 


8  Penri.  Gaz.  1804. 


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348 


THE  WAR  ON  THE  BORDERS. 


[Chap.  XIX 


On  the  previous  day,  six  men,  assembled  for  reap- 
ing the  harvest,  had  been  seated  at  dinner  at  the 
house  of  Campbell,  a  settler  on  the  Juniata.  Four 
or  five  Indians  suddenly  burst  the  door,  fired  among 
them,  and  then  beat  down  the  survivors  with  the 
buts  of  their  rifles.  One  young  man  leaped  from 
his  seat,  snatched  a  gun  which  stood  in  a  corner, 
discharged  it  into  the  breast  of  the  warrior  who  was 
rushing  upon  him,  and,  leaping  through  an  open 
window,  made  his  escape.  He  fled  through  the  forest 
v^  to  a  settlement  at  some  distance,  where  he  related  his 
story.  Upon  this,  twelve  young  men  volunteered  to 
cross  the  mountain,  and  warn  the  inhabitants  of  the 

i  i  neighboring  Tuscarora  valley.  On  entering  it,  they 
found  that  the  enemy  had  been  there  before  them. 
Some  of  the  houses  were  on  fire,  while  others  were 
still  standing,  with  no  tenants  but  the  dead.  Under 
the  shed  of  a  farmer,  the  Indians  had  been  feasting 
on  the  flesh  of  the  cattle  they  had  killed,  and  the 
meat  had  not  yet  grown  cold.  Pursuing  their  course, 
the  white  men  found  the  spot  where  several  detached 
parties  of  the  enemy  had  united  almost  immediately 
before,  and  they  boldly  resolved  to  follow,  in  order 
to  ascertain  what  direction  the  marauders  had  taken. 
The  trail  led  them  up  a  deep  and  woody  pass  of 
the  Tuscarora.  Here  the  yell  of  the  war-whoop  and 
the  din  of  fire-arms  suddenly  greeted  them,  and  five 

'  of  their  number  were  shot  down.  Thirty  warriors 
rose  from  their  ambuscade,  and  rushed  upon  them. 
I  They  gave  one  discharge,  scattered,  and  ran  for  their 
lives.  One  of  them,  a  boy  named  Charles  Eliot,  as 
he  fled,  plunging  through  the  thickets,  heard  an  In- 
dian tearing  the  boughs  beiiind  him,  in  furious  pur- 
suit.    He  seized  his  powder-horn,  pour^  the  contents 


Chap.  XK.] 


THE  DYING  BOBDERER. 


349 


at  random  down  the  muzzle  of  his  gun,  threw  in  a 
bullet  after  them,  without  using  the  ramrod,  and, 
wheeling  about,  discharged  the  piece  into  the  breast 
of  his  pursuer.  He  saw  the  Indian  shrink  back 
and  roll  over  into  the  bushes.  He  continued  his 
flight;  but  a  moment  after,  a  voice  earnestly  called 
his  name.  Turning  to  the  spot,  he  saw  one  of  his 
comrades  stretched  helpless  upon  the  ground.  This 
man  had  been  mortally  wounded  at  the  first  fire,  but 
had  fled  a  few  rods  from  the  scene  of  blood,  before 
his  strength  gave  out.  Eliot  approached  him.  «  Take 
my  gun,"  said  the  dying  frontiersman.  ""Whenever 
you  see  an  Indian,  kill  him  with  it,  and  then  I  shall 
be  satisfied."  ^  Eliot,  with  several  others  of  the  party, 
escaped,  and  finally  reached  Carlisle,  where  his  story 
excited  a  spirit  of  uncontrollable  wrath  and  ven- 
geance among  the  fierce  backwoodsmen.  Several  par- 
ties went  out,  and  one  of  them,  commanded  by  the 
sheriff  of  the  place,  encountered  a  band  of  Indians, 
routed  them  after  a  sharp  fight,  and  brought  in  sev- 
eral scalps.* 

The   surrounding   country  was  by  this  time  com- 
pletely abandoned  by  the  settlers,  many  of  whom,  not 


1  Robison,  Narrative.  Robison 
wag  one  of  the  party,  and  his  brother 
was  mortally  wounded  at  the  first 
fire. 

2  Extract  from  a  Letter — Carlisle, 
July  13,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1804.) 

"Last  Night  Colonel  Armstrong 
returned.  He  left  the  Party,  who 
pursued  furUier,  and  found  several 
dead,  whom  they  buried  in  the  best 
manner  they  could,  and  are  now  all 
returned  in.  —  From  what  appears, 
the  Indians  are  travelling  from  one 
Place  to  another,  along  the  Valley, 
burning  the  Farms,  and  destroying 
all  the  People  they  meet  with. — This 
Day  gives  an  Account  of  six  more 


being  killed  in  the  Valley,  so  that, 
since  last  Sunday  Morning  to  this 
Bay,  Twclva  o'clock,  we  have  a  pret- 
ty authratic  Account  of  the  Number 
slain,  being  Twenty-five,  and  four  or 
five  wounded.  —  The  Colonel,  Mr. 
Wilson,  and  Mr.  Alricks,  are  now  on 
the  Parade,  endeavouring  to  raise 
another  Party,  to  go  out  and  succour 
the  Sheriff  and  his  Party,  consisting 
of  Fifty  Men,  which  marched  Yester- 
day, and  hope  they  will  be  able  to 
send  off  immediately  Twenty  good 
Men.  —  The  People  here,  I  assure 
you,  want  nothing  but  a  good  I<eader, 
and  a  little  Encouragement,  to  make 
a  very  good  Defence." 

DD 


le 


m'A 


!•»«*; 


\w 


■y  1 


V 


•I 


350 


THE  WAB  ON  THE  BOBDERS. 


[Cbaf.  XIX. 


content  with  seeking  refuge  at  Carlisle,  continued 
their  flight  to  the  eastward,  and,  headed  by  the  cler- 
gyman of  that  place,  pushed  on  to  Lancaster,  and 
even  to  Philadelphia.*  Carlisle  presented  a  most  de- 
plorable spectacle.  A  multitude  of  the  refugees,  unable 
to  find  shelter  in  the  town,  had  encamped  in  the 
woods  or  on  the  adjacent  fields,  erecting  huts  of 
branches  and  bark,  and  living  on  such  charity  as 
the  slender  means  of  the  townspeople  could  supply. 
Passing  among  them,  one  would  have  witnessed  every 
form  of  human  misery.  In  these  wretched  encamp- 
ments were  men,  women,  and  children,  bereft  at  one 
stroke  of  friends,  of  home,  and  the  means  of  sup- 
porting life.  Some  stood  aghast  and  bewUdered  at 
the  sudden  and  fatal  blow;  others  weare  sunk  in  the 
apathy  of  despair;  others  were  weeping  and  moan- 
ing with  irrepressible  anguish.  With  not  a  few,  the 
craven  passion  of  fear  drowned  all  other  emotion, 
and  day  and  night  they  were  haunted  with  visions 
of  the  bloody  knife  and  the  reeking  scalp;  while  in 
others,  every  faculty  was  absorbed  by  the  burning 
thirst  for  veugear'^  and  mortal  hatred  against  the 
whole  Indian  ra(r 


Ml 


A--,  iV) 


1  Extmct  from  a  Letter — Carlisle, 
July  5,  (Hat  Pa.  Reg.  IV.  390.) 

"  Notning  conld  exceed  the  terror 
which  prevailed  from  house  to  house, 
from  town  to  town.  The  road  was 
near  covered  with  women  and  chil- 
dren, flying  to  Lancaster  and  Phila- 
delphia.   The  Rev. ^,  Pastor 

of  the  Episcopal  Church,  went  at  the 
head  of  Ms  congregation,  to  protect 
and  encourage  them  on  the  way.  A 
few  retired  to  the  Breast  works  for 
safety.  The  alarm  once  given  could 
net  be  appeased.  We  have  done  all 
that  men  can  do  to  prevent  disorder. 
All  our  hopes  are  turned  upon  Bou- 
quet." :    .^  !>■  «^ 


9  Extract  from  a  Letter—  Carlisle, 
July  12,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1804.) 

"  I  embrace  this  first  Leisure,  since 
Yesterday  Morning,  to  transmit  you 
a  brief  Account  of  our  present  State 
of  Affairs  here,  which  indeed  is  ven' 
distressing;  every  Day,  almost,  af- 
fording some  fresh  Object  to  awaken 
the  Compassion,  alarm  the  Fears,  or 
kindle  into  Resentment  and  Ven- 

Etce  eveiT  sensible  Breast,  whih 
g  Famines,  obliged  to  abandon 
se  and  Possession,  to  save  their 
Lives  by  an  hasty  Escape;  mourn- 
ing Widows,  bewailing  their  Hus- 
bands surprised  and  massacred  by 
savage  Rage ;  tender  Parents,  la- 


le,  continued 
I  by  the  cler- 
jancaster,  and 
3d  a  most  de- 
fugees,  unable 
iiinped  in  the 
iting  huts  of 
ch  charity  as 

could  supply, 
itnessed  every 
;ched  encamp- 

bereft  at  one 
neans  of  sup- 

bewildered  at 
re  sunk  in  the 
ng  and  moan- 
not  a  few,  the 
other  emotion, 
d  with  visions 
calp;  while  in 
y  the  burning 
ed  against  the 


Chap.  XIX.] 


SCENES  AT  CARLISLE. 


351 


menting  the  Fruits  of  their  own 
Bodies,  cropt  in  the  very  Bloom  of 
Life  by  a  barbarous  Hand ;  with  Re- 
lations and  Acquaintances,  pouring 
out  Sorrow  for  murdered  Neighbours 
and  Friends,  present  a  variea  Scene 
of  mingled  Distress. 


"To-da^  a  British  Vengeance  be- 

S'ns  to  nse  in  the  Breasts  of  our 
en.  —  One  of  them  that  fell  from 
among  the  12,  as  he  was  just  expir- 
ing, said  to  one  of  his  Fellows,  Here, 
take  my  Gun,  and  kill  the  first  In- 
dian you  see,  fkid  all  shall  be  well." 


"4'  '   r/i      I 


< ..     >     ^  yi 


' '  H^      ^  *■'!  i'^ 


<: 


h;,   ». 


n  a  Letter — Carlisle, 
Gaz.  No.  1804.) 
his  first  Leisure,  since 
nine,  to  transmit  you 
t  of  our  present  State 
,  which  indeed  is  ven 
rery  Day,  almost,  af- 
resh Object  to  awaken 
n,  alarm  the  Fears,  or 
esentment  and  Ven- 
sensible  Breast,  whil^ 
B,  obliged  to  abandon 
issession,  to  save  their 
lasty  Escape;  moum- 
bewailing  their  Hus- 
jd  and  massacred  by 
;  tender  Parents,  la- 


'>'  t.J  "    -^''if 


■  'a^ 


:^^y:  ii}f'' 


1  -..  ■ 


CHAPTER    XX. 


THE   BATTLE   OP   BUSHY    RUN. 


i 


:'V; 


\   \ 


The  miserable  multitude  were  soon  threatened  with 
famine,  and  gathered  in  crowds  around  the  tents  of 
Bouquet,  soliciting  relief,  which  he  was  too  humane 
to  refuse.  In  the  mean  time,  the  march  of  the  little 
army  had  been  delayed  beyond  expectation,  since,  from 
the  terror  and  flight  of  the  inhabitants,'  it  was  almost 
impossible  to  collect  upon  the  frontier  the  necessary 
horses,  wagons,  and  provision.^  Eecourse  was  had  to 
the  settlements  farther  eastward;  and,  after  the  lapse 
of  eighteen  days,  every  obstacle  being  now  overcome, 
Bouquet  broke  up  his  camp,  and  set  forth  on  his  du- 
bious enterprise.  As  the  troops,  with  their  heavy  con- 
voy, defiled  through  the  street  of  Carlisle,  the  people 
crowded  to  look  on,  not  with  the  idle  curiosity  of 
rustics,  gazing  on  an  unwonted  military  spectacle, 
but  with  the  anxious  hearts  of  men  whose  all  was  at 
stake  on  the  issue  of  the  expedition.  The  haggard 
looks  and  thin  frames  of  these  worn-out  veterans 
filled  them  with  blackest  forebodings ;  nor  were  these 
diminished  when  they  beheld  sixty  invalid  soldiers, 
who,  unable  to  walk,  were  borne  forward  in  wagons 
to  furnish  a  feeble  reenforcement  to  the  small  garri- 
sons  along    the  route.''     The   desponding   spectators 


i  MS.  Letter  —  Bouquet  to  Am-       "  Hutchina,  Account  of  Bouquet's 
heret,July3.  expedition.    Introduction,  VL 


•* 


Chap.  XX.] 


DEPARTURE  OP  BOUQUET. 


353 


watched  the  last  gleam  of  the  bayonets,  as  the  rear- 
guard entered  the  woods,  and  then  returned  to  their 
hovels,  prepared  for  tidmgs  of  defeat,  and  ready,  on 
the  first  news  of  the  disaster,  to  desert  the  country 
and  fly  beyond  the  Susquehanna. 

In  truth,  the  adventure  would  have  seemed  des- 
perate to  any  but  the  manliest  heart.  In  &ont  lay 
a  vast  wilderness,  terrible  alike  from  its  own  stem 
features  and  the  ferocious  enemy  who  haunted  its 
recesses.  Among  these  forests  lay  the  bones  of  Brad- 
dock  and  the  hundreds  who  fell  with  him.  The 
number  of  the  slain  on  that  bloody  day  exceeded 
the  whole  force  of  Bouquet,  while  the  strength  of 
the  assailants  was  far  inferior  to  that  of  the  swarms 
who  now  infested  the  woods.  Except  a  few  rangers, 
whom  Bouquet  had  gathered  on  the  frontier,  the 
troops  were  utterly  unused  to  the  forest  service;  a 
service,  the  terrors,  hardships,  and  vicissitudes  of 
which  seldom  find  a  parallel  in  the  warfare  of  civil- 
ized nations.  Fully  appreciating  the  courage  of 
the  frontiersmen,  their  excellence  as  marksmen,  and 
their  knowledge  of  the  woods.  Bouquet  had  endeav- 
ored to  engage  a  body  of  them  to  accompany  the 
expedition;  but  they  preferred  to  remain  for  the  im- 
mediate defence  of  their  families  and  friends,  rather 
than  embark  in  a  distant  and  doubtful  adventure. 
The  results  involved  in  the  enterprise  were  altogether 
(lisproportioned  to  the  smaU  numbers  engaged  in  it; 
and  it  was  happy,  not  only  for  the  troops,  but  also 
for  the  colonies,  that  the  ofiicer  in  command  pre- 
sented, in  every  respect,  a  marked  contrast  to  his 
perverse  and  wrong-headed  predecessor  Braddock. 

Henry  Bouquet  was  by  birth  a  Swiss,  of  Che  can- 
ton of  Berne.     His  military  life  began  while  he  was 


!:  tf-)  U 


..*     : 


45 


DD 


r 

J]  w 

■:      i        if 

1 

1^ 

,i 

1 J 

S^i 


U 


354 


TIIE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  RUN. 


[Chap.  XX. 


yet  a  boy.  He  held  a  commission  in  the  army  of 
the  King  of  Sardinia;  but  when  the  war  between 
France  and  England'  broke  out,  in  1755,  he  was  en- 
gaged in  the  service  of  the  States  of  Holland.  At 
this  time,  a  plan  was  formed,  under  the  auspices  of 
the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  to  oi^anize  a  corps  to  serve 
in  the  provinces,  and  to  be  called  the  Koyal  Ameri- 
cans. The  commissions  were  to  be  given  to  foreigners, 
as  well  as  to  Englishmen  and  provincials,  while  the 
ranks  were  to  be  filled  chiefly  from  the  German 
emigrants  in  Pennsylvania  and  other  provinces.^  Bou- 
quet was  induced  to  accept  the  commission  of  lieu- 
tenant' colonel  in  this  regiment ;  and  his  services  soon 
proved  of  the  utmost  value,  since  his  military  talents 
and  personal  character  were  alike  fitted  to  command 
respect  and  confidence.  His  person  was  fine,  his 
bearing  composed  and  dignified.  In  the  provinces, 
and  especially  in  Pennsylvania,  he  was  held  in  the 


1  "  The  next  object  of  the  imme- 
diate attention  of  Parliament  in  this 
session  was  the  raising  of  a  new  regi- 
ment of  foot  in  Norm  America ;  for 
which  purpose,  the  sum  of  £  81,178 
168.  was  voted.  This  regiment, 
which  was  to  consist  of  four  bat- 
talions of  1000  men  each,  was  in- 
tended to  be  raised  chiefly  out  of  the 
Germans  and  Swiss,  who,  for  many 
years  past,  had  annually  transported 
themselves  in  great  numbera  to  Brit- 
ish plantations  in  America,  where 
waste  lands  had  been  assigned  them 
upon  the  frontiers  of  the  provinces ; 
but,  very  injudiciously,  no  care  had 
been  taken  to  intermix  them  with  the 
English  inhabitants  of  the  place,  so 
that  very  few  of  them,  even  of  those 
who  have  been  bom  there,  have  yet 
learned  to  speak  or  underatand  the 
English  tongue.  However,  as  they 
were  all  zealous  Protestants,  and  in 
general  strong,  hardy  men,  accus- 
tomed to  the  climate,  it  was  judged 


that  a  regiment  of  good  and  faithful 
soldiers  might  be  raised  out  of  them, 
particularly  proper  to  oppose  the 
French ;  but  to  this  end  it  was  neces- 
sary to  appoint  some  officers,  espe- 
cially subalterns,  who  understood 
military  discipline  and  could  speak  the 
German  language ;  and  as  a  sufficient 
number  of  such  could  not  be  found 
among  the  English  officers,  it  was 
necessary  to  bring  over  and  grant 
commissions  to  several  German  and 
Swiss  officers  and  engineers.  But 
as  this  step,  by  the  Act  of  Settle- 
ment, could  not  be  taken  without  the 
authority  of  Parliament,  an  act  was 
now  passed  for  enabling  his  majesty 
to  grant  commissions  to  a  certain 
number  of  foreign  Protestants,  who 
had  served  abroad  as  officers  or  en- 
gineers, to  act  and  rank  as  officers  or 
engineers  in  America  only."  —  Smol- 
let,  England,  III.  475. 

The  Royal  American  Regiment  is 
now  the  60th  Rifles. 


mm 


Chap.  XX.] 


BOUQUET  — mS  CHARACTER. 


355 


highest  esteem.  He  was  a  master  of  the  English 
language,  writing  in  a  style  of  great  purity;  and 
though  enthusiastic  in  the  study  of  his  profession, 
his  tastes  led  him  to  frequent  the  society  of  men 
of  science  and  literature.  As  a  soldier,  he  was 
distinguished  by  great  activity,  an  unshaken  cour- 
age, and  an  unfailing  fertility  of  resource;  while 
to  these  qualities  he  added  a  power  of  adaptation 
which  had  been  lamentably  wanting  in  some  of  the 
English  officers  who  preceded  him.^  He  had  acquired 
a  practical  knowledge  of  Indian  warfare,  and  it  is 
said  that,  in  the  course  of  the  hazardous  partisan 
service  in  which  he  was  often  engaged,  when  it  was 
necessary  to  penetrate  dark  defiles  and  narrow  passes, 
he  was  sometimes  known  to  advance  before  his 
men,  armed  with  a  rifle,  and  acting  the  part  of  a 
scout. 

The  route  of  the  army  lay  along  the  beautiful 
Cumberland  Valley.  Passing  here  and  there  a  few 
scattered  cabins,  deserted  or  burnt  to  the  ground, 
they  reached  the  hamlet  of  Shippensburg,  some- 
what more  than  twenty  miles  from  their  point  of 
departure.  Here,  as  at  Carlisle,  was  congregated  a 
starving  multitude,  who  had  fled  from  the  knife  and 
the  tomahawk." 

By  the  last  advices  from  the  westw^ard,  it  appeared 
that  Fort  Ligonier,  situated  beyond  the  Alleghanies, 
was  in  imminent  danger  of  falling  into  the  enemy's 


1  Relation  Historique  de  Tlbcp^- 
dition  contre  les  Indiens  de  I'Ohio. 
Traduit  de  I'Anglois.  Preface  du 
Tradacteur. 

2  "Our  Accounts  from  the  west- 
ward are  as  follows,  viz. :  — 

"  On  the  25th  of  July  there  were 
in  Shippensburgh  1384  of  our  poor 


distressed  Back  Inhabitants,  viz. 
Men,  301 ;  Women,  345 ;  Children, 
738 ;  Many  of  whom  were  obliged 
to  lie  in  Bams,  Stables,  Cellars,  and 
under  old  leaky  Sheds,  tixe  Dwelling- 
houses  being  all  crowded." — Penn. 
Gaz.  No.  1806. 


^m 


I* 


r    ) 


li 


"r».    1 

'/    ■  '  ' 


I:     '^  ii 


I  i      ' 


If  I 


356 


THE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  HUN. 


[Chap.  XX. 


hands  before  the  army  could  come  up;  for  its  de- 
fences were  slight,  its  garrison  was  feeble,  and  the 
Indians  had  assailed  it  with  repeated  attacks.  The 
magazine  which  the  place  contained  made  it  of  such 
importance  that  Bouquet  resolved  at  all  hazards  to 
send  a  party  to  its  relief.  Thirty  of  the  best  men 
were  accordingly  chosen,  and  ordered  to  push  for- 
ward  with  the  utmost  speed,  by  unfrequented  routes 
through  the  forests  and  over  the  mountains,  carefully 
avoiding  the  road,  which  would  doubtless  be  infested 
by  the  enemy.  The  party  set  out  on  their  critical 
errand,  guided  by  frontier  hunters,  and  observing 
a  strict  silence.  Using  every  precaution,  and  ad- 
vancing by  forced  marches,  day  after  day,  they  came 
in  sight  of  the  fort  without  being  discovered.  It 
was  beset  by  Indians,  and,  as  the  p^ty  made  for 
the  gate,  they  were  seen  and  fired  upon;  but  they 
threw  themselves  into  the  place  without  the  loss  of 
a  man,  and  Ligonier  was  for  the  time  secure.^ 

In  the  mean  time,  the  army,  advancing  with 
slower  progress,  entered  a  country  where  as  yet 
scarcely  an  English  settler  had  built  his  cabin. 
Reaching  Fort  Loudon,  on  the  declivities  of  Cove 
Mountain,  they  ascended  the  wood-encumbered  defiles 
beyond.  Far  on  their  right  stretched  the  green 
ridges  of  the  Tuscarora,  while,  in  front,  mountain 
beyond  mountain  rose  high  against  the  horizon. 
Climbing  heights  and  descending  into  valleys,  pass- 
ing the  two  solitary  posts  of  Littleton  and  the  Ju- 
niata, both  abandoned  by  their  garrisons,  they  came 
in  sight  of  Fort  Bedford,  hemmed  in  by  encircling 
mountains.     Their  arrival  gave  infinite  relief  to  the 


1  Hutchins,  Account  of  Bouquet's  Expedition.    Introduction,  VI. 


Chap.  XX.] 


MARCH  OF  BOUQUET. 


357 


trodaction,  VI. 


garrison,  who  had  long  heen  beleaguered  and  endan- 
gered by  a  swarm  of  Indians,  while  many  of  the 
settlers  in  the  neighborhood  had  been  killed,  and 
the .  rest  driven  for  refuge  into  the  fort.  Captain 
Ourry,  the  commanding  officer,  reported  that,  for  sev- 
eral weeks,  nothing  had  been  heard  from  the  west- 
ward, every  messenger  having  been  killed,  and  the 
communication  completely  cut  off.  By  the  last  in- 
telligence. Fort  Pitt  had  been  sui-rounded  by  In- 
dians, and  daily  threatened  with  a  general  attack. 

Having  remained  encamped,  for  three  days,  on  the 
fields  near  the  fort.  Bouquet  resumed  his  march  on 
the  twenty-eighth  of  July,  and  soon  passed  beyond 
the  farthest  verge  of  civilized  habitation.  The  whole 
country  lay  buried  in  foliage.  Except  the  rocks 
which  crowned  the  mountains,  and  the  streams 
which  rippled  along  the  valleys,  the  unbroken  forest, 
like  a  vast  garment,  invested  the  whole.  The  road 
was  channelled  through  its  depths,  while,  on  each 
side,  the  brown  trunks  and  tangled  undergrowth 
formed  a  wall  so  dense  as  almost  to  bar  the  sight. 
Through  a  country  thus  formed  by  nature  for  am- 
buscades, not  a  step  was  free  from  danger,  and  no 
precaution  was  neglected  to  guard  against  surprise. 
In  advance  of  the  marching  column  moved  the  pro- 
vincial rangers,  closely  followed  by  the  pioneers. 
The  wagoiis  and  cattle  were  in  the  centre,  guarded 
m  front,  iiank,  and  rear  by  the  regulars,  while  a 
rearguard  of  rangers  closed  the  line  of  march. 
Keen-eyed  riflemen  of  the  frontier,  acting  as  scouts, 
scoured  the  woods  far  in  front  and  on  either  flank, 
so  that  surprise  was  unpossible.  In  this  order  the 
little  army  toiled  heavily  on,  over  a  road  beset  with 
all  the   obstructions    of   the  forest,   until   the  main 


C 


•M 


S__L. 


358 


THE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  RUN. 


[Chaf.  XX. 


*   I 


>    I 


ridge  of  the  Alleghanies,  like  a  mighty  wall  of 
green,  rose  up  before  them,  and  they  began  their 
zigzag  progress  up  the  woody  heights,  amid  the 
sweltering  heats  of  July.  The  tongues  of  the  pant- 
ing oxen  hung  lolling  from  their  jaws,  while  the 
pine-trees,  scorching  in  the  hot  sun,  diffused  their 
resinous  odors  through  the  sultry  air.  At  length, 
from  the  windy  summit  the  Highland  soldiers  could 
gaze  around  upon  a  boundless  panorama  of  fore8^ 
covered  mountains,  wild   as   their  own  native  hills. 

N<)  Descending  from  the  Alleghanies,  they  entered  upon 
a  country  less  rugged  and  formidable  in  itself,  but 
beset  vsdth  constantly  increasing  dangers.  On  the 
second  of  August,  they  reached  Fort  Ligonier,  about 
fifty  miles  from  Bedford,  and  a  hutdred  and  fifly 
from  Carlisle.  The  Indians  who  were  about  the 
place  vanished  at  their  approach ;  but  the  garrison 
could  furnish  no  intelligence  of  the  motions  and  de* 
signs  of  the  enemy,  having  been  completely  block- 
aded  for   weeks.     In   this  uncertainty.   Bouquet  re- 

'^  solved  to  leave  behind  the  oxen  and  wagons,  which 
formed  the  most  cumbrous  part  of  the  convoy,  since 
this  would  enable  him  to  advance  with  greater  celer- 
ity, and  oppose  a  better  resistance  in  case  of  attack. 
Thus  relieved,  the  army  resumed  its  march  on  the 
fourth,  taking  with  them  three  hundred  and  fifty 
pack  horses  and  a  few  cattle,  and  at  nightfall  en- 
camped at  no  great  distance  from  Ligonier.  Within 
less  than  a  day's  march  in  advance  lay  the  danger- 

,  ous  defiles  of  Turtle  Creek,  a  stream  flowing  at  the 
bottom  of  a  deep  hollow,  flanked  by  steep  decliv- 
ities, along  the  foot  of  which  the  road  at  that  time 
ran  for  some  distance.  Fearing  that  the  enemy 
would    lay    an    ambuscade    at    this    place.   Bouquet 


Chap.  XX-l 


UNEXPECTED  ATTACK. 


359 


resolved  to  march  on  the  following  day  as  far  as  a 
small  stream  called  Bushy  Run,  to  rest  here  until 
night,  and  then,  by  a  forced  march,  to  cross  Turtle 
Creek  under  cover  of  the  darkness. 

On  the  morning  of  the  fifth,  the  tents  were  struck 
at  an  early  hour,  and  the  troops  began  their  march 
through  a  country  broken  with  hills  and  deep  hol- 
lows, every  where  covered  with  the  tall,  dense  forest, 
which  spread  for  countless  leagues  around.  By  one 
o'clock,  they  had  advanced  seventeen  miles,  and  the 
guides  assured  them  that  they  were  within  half  a 
mile  of  Bushy  Run,  their  proposed  resting-place. 
The  tired  soldiers  were  pressing  forward  with  re- 
newed alacrity,  when  suddenly  the  report  of  rifles 
from  the  front  sent  a  thrill  along  the  ranks:  and,  as 
they  listened,  the  firing  thickened  into  a  fierce,  sharp 
rattle,  while  shouts  and  whoops,  deadened  by  the  in- 
tervening forest,  showed  that  the  advanced  guard 
was  hotly  engaged.  The  two  foremost  companies 
were  at  once  ordered  forward  to  support  it;  but 
&r  from  abating,  the  fire  grew  so  rapid  and  furious 
as  to  argue  the  presence  of  an  enemy  at  once  nu- 
merous and  resolute.  At  this,  the  convoy  was  halted, 
the  troops  formed  into  line,  and  a  general  charge 
ordered.  Bearing  down  through  tlio  forest  with 
fixed  bayonets,  they  drove  the  yelping  assailants  be- 
fore them,  and  swept  the  ground  clear.  But  at  the 
very  moment  of  success,  a  fresh  burst  of  whoops 
and  firing  was  heard  from  either  flank,  while  a  con- 
fused noise  from  the  rear  showed  that  the  convoy 
was  attacked.  It  was  necessary  instantly  to  fall 
back  for  its  support.  Driving  off  the  assailants,  the 
troops  formed  in  a  circle  around  the  crowded  and 
terrified    horses.     Though    they    were    new    to    the 


W 


. '»;»! 


I 


360 


Tli^  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  RUN. 


[Chap.  XX. 


hi 


work,  and  though  the  numbers  and  movements  of 
the  enemy,  whose  yellmg  resounded  on  every  side, 
were  concealed  by  the  thick  forest,  yet  no  man 
lost  his  composure;  and  all  displayed  a  steadiness 
which  nothing  but  implicit  confidence  in  their  com- 
mander could  have  inspired.  And  now  ensued  a 
combat  of  a  nature  most  harassing  and  discouraging. 
Again  and  again,  now  on  this  side  and  now  on 
that,  a  crowd  of  Indians  rushed  up,  pouring  in 
a  heavy  fire,  and  striving,  with  furious  outcries,  to 
break  into  the  circle.  A  well-directed  volley  met 
them,  followed  by  a  steady  charge  of  the  bayonet. 
They  never  waited  an  instant  to  receive  the  attack, 
but,  leaping  backwards  from  tree  to  tree,  soon  van- 
ished from  sight,  only  to  renew  their  attack  T»ith 
unabated  ferocity  in  another  quarter.  Such  was 
their    activity    that    very   few   of   them   were    hurt, 

,^while  the  English,  less  expert  in  bush  fighting,  suf- 
fered severely.     Thus  the  fight  went  on,  without  iu- 

^termission,  for  seven  hours,  until  the  forest  giew 
dark  with  approaching  night.  Upon  this,  the  In- 
dians  gradually  slackened  their  fire,  and  the  ex- 
hausted soldiers  found  time  to  rest. 

It  was  impossible  to  change  their  ground  in  the 
enemy's  presence,  and  the  troops  were  obliged  to 
encamp  upon  the  hill  where  the  combat  had  taken 
place,  though  not  a  drop  of  water  was  to  be  found 
there.  Fearing  a  night  attack,  Bouquet  stationed 
numerous  sentinels  and  outposts  to  guard  against  it, 
^  while  the  men  lay  down  upon  their  arms,  preserving 
the  order  they  had  maintained  during  the  fight, 
Having  completed  the  necessary  arrangements.  Bou- 
quet, doubtful  of  surviving  the  battle  of  the  morrow, 
wrote  to  Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst,  in  a  few  clear,  concise 


angements,  Boii- 
of  the  morrow, 


Chap.  XX.]    DISTRESS  AND  DANGER  OF  THE  TROOPS.       361 

words,  an  account  of  the  day's  events.  His  letter 
concludes  as  follows:  "Whatever  our  fate  may  he,  I 
thought  it  necessary  to  give  your  excellency  this 
earlj  information,  that  you  may,  at  all  events,  take 
such  measures  as  you  will  think  proper  with  the 
provinces,  for  their  own  safety,  and  the  effectual 
reUef  of  Fort  Pitt;  as,  in  case  of  another  engage- 
ment, I  fear  insurmountahle  difficulties  in  protecting 
and  transporting  our  provisions,  being  already  so 
much  weakened  by  the  losses  of  this  day,  in  men 
and  horses,  besides  the  additional  necessity  of 
carrying  the  wounded,  whose  situation  is  truly 
deplorable." 

The  condition  of  these  unhappy  men  might  well 
awaken  symp.'t>iy.  About  sixty  soldiers,  besides  sev- 
eral officers,  had  been  killed  or  disabled.  A  space 
in  the  centre  of  the  camp  was  prepared  for  the 
reception  of  the  wounded,  and  surrounded  by  a  wall 
of  flour-bags  from  the  convoy,  affording  some  pro- 
tection against  the  bullets  which  flew  from  all 
sides  during  the  fight.  Here  they  lay  upon  the 
ground,  enduring  agonies  of  thirst,  and  waiting,  pas- 
sive and  helpless,  the  issue  of  the  battle.  Deprived 
of  the  animating  thought  that  their  lives  and  safety 
depended  on  their  own  exertions;  surrounded  by  a 
wilderness,  and  by  scenes  to  the  horror  of  which 
no  degree  of  familiarity  could  render  the  imagina- 
tion callous,  they  must  have  endured  mental  suffer- 
ings, compared  to  which  the  pain  of  their  wounds 
was  slight.  In  the  probable  event  of  defeat,  a  fate 
inexpressibly  horrible  awaited  them;  while  even  vic- 
tory would  by  no  means  insure  their  safety,  since 
any  great  increase  in  their  numbers  would  render  it 
impossible  for  their  comrades  to  transport  them. 
46  ££ 


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362 


)  THE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  RITN. 


[Chap.  XX, 


\  f 


Nor  was  the  condition  of  those  who  had  hitherto 
escaped  an  enviable  one.  Though  they  were  about 
equal  in  numbers  to  their  assailants,  yet  the  dex- 
terity and  alertness  of  the  Indians,  joined  to  the 
nature  of  the  country,  gave  all  the  advantages  of  a 
greatly  superior  force.  The  enemy  were,  moreover, 
exulting  in  the  fullest  confidence  of  success ;  for  it 
was  in  these  very  forests  that,  eight  years  before, 
they  had  well  nigh  destroyed  twice  their  number  of 
the  best  British  troops.  Throughout  the  earlier  part 
of  the  night,  they  kept  up  a  dropping  fire  upon  the 
camp,  while,  at  short  intervals,  a  wild  whoop  from 
the  thick  surrounding  gloom  told  with  what  fierce 
eagerness  they  waited  to  glut  their  vengeance  on  the 
morrow.  The  camp  remained  in  darkness,  for  it 
would  have  been  highly  dangerous  to  build  fires 
within  its  precincts,  which  would  have  served  to 
direct  the  aim  of  the  lurking  marksmen.  Sur- 
rounded by  such  terrors,  the  men  snatched  a 
disturbed  and  broken  sleep,  recruiting  their  ex- 
hausted strength  for  the  renewed  struggle  of  the 
morning. 

With  the  earliest  dawn  of  day,  and  while  the 
damp,  cool  forest  was  still  involved  in  twilight, 
there  rose  around  the  camp  a  general  burst  of 
those  horrible  cries  which  form  the  ordinary  prel- 
ude of  an  Indian  battle.  Instantly,  from  every  side 
at  once,  the  enemy  opened  their  fire,  approaching 
under  cover  of  the  trees  and  bushes,  and  levelling 
with  a  close  and  deadly  aim.  Often,  as  on  the  pre- 
vious day,  they  would  rush  up  with  furious  impet- 
uosity, striving  to  break  into  the  ring  of  troops. 
They  were  repulsed  at  every  point;  but  the  Eng- 
lish,  though   constantly   victorious,  were  beset  with  ■  he 


Cbav.  XX.] 


CONFLICT  OF  THE  SECOND  DAY. 


363 


u"  iiinished  perils,  while  the  violence  of  the  enemy 
s<r  iied  every  moment  on  the  increase.  True  to  their 
fa\'oiite  tactics,  they  would  never  stand  their  ground 
when  attacked,  but  vanish  at  the  first  gleam  of  the 
levelled  bayonet,  only  to  appear  again  the  moment 
the  danger  was  past.  The  troops,  fatigued  by  the 
long  march  and  equally  long  battle  of  the  previous 
day,  were  maddened  by  the  torments  of  thirst,  more 
intolerable,  says  their  commander,  than  the  fire  of 
the  enemy.  They  were  fully  conscious  of  the  peril 
in  which  they  stood,  of  wasting  away  by  slow  de- 
grees beneath  the  shot  of  assailants  at  once  so 
daring,  so  cautious,  and  so  active,  and  upon  whom 
it  was  impossible  to  inflict  any  decisive  injury.  The 
Indians  saw  their  distress,  and  pressed  them  closer 
and  closer,  redoubling  their  yells  and  bowlings, 
while  some  of  them,  sheltered  behind  trees,  as- 
sailed the  troops,  in  bad  English,  with  abuse  and 
derision.  -  * 

Meanwhile  the  interior  of  the  camp  was  a  scene 
of  confusion.  The  horses,  secured  in  a  crowd  near 
the  intrenchment  which  covered  the  wounded,  were 
often  struck  by  the  buUets,  and  wrought  to  the 
height  of  terror  by  the  mingled  din  of  whoops, 
shrieks,  and  firing.  They  would  break  away  by 
half  scores  at  a  time,  burst  through  the  ring  of 
troops  and  the  outer  ckcle  of  assailants,  and  scour 
madly  up  and  down  the  hill  sides;  while  many  of 
the  drivers,  overcome  by  the  terrors  of  a  scene  in 
which  they  could  bear  no  active  part,  hid  them- 
selves among  the  bushes,  and  could  neither  hear 
nor  obey  orders. 

It  was  now  about  ten  o'clock.  Oppressed  with 
heat,  fatigue,  and  thirst,  the   distressed   troops  still 


fl''-^ 


lit  .     rV 


.'H-' 


364 


i  A 


THE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  RUN. 


[Chap.  XX. 


^ 


maintained  a  weary  and  wavering  defence,  encircling 
the  convoy  in  a  yet  unbroken  ring.  They  were  fast 
falling  in  their  ranks,  and  the  strength  and  spirits 
of  the  survivors  had  begun  to  flag.  If  the  fortunes 
of  the  day  were  to  be  retrieved,  the  effort  must  be 
made  at  once;  and  happily  the  mind  of  the  com- 
mander was  equal  to  the  emergency.  In  the  midst 
of  the  confusion  he  conceived  a  stratagem  alike 
novel  and  masterly.  Could  the  Indians  be  brought 
together  in  a  body,  and  made  to  stand  their  ground 
when  attacked,  there  could  be  little  doubt  of  the 
result;  and  to  effect  this  object.  Bouquet  determined 
to  increase  their  confidence,  which  had  already 
mounted  to  an  audacious  pitch.  Two  companies  of 
infantry,  forming  a  part  of  the  ring  which  had  been 
exposed  to  the  hottest  fire,  were  ordered  to  fall  back 
into  the  interior  of  the  camp,  while  the  troops  on 
either  hand  joined  their  files  across  the  vacant 
space,  as  if  to  cover  the  retreat  of  their  comrades. 
These  orders,  given  at  a  favorable  moment,  were 
executed  with  great  promptness.  The  thin  line  of 
troops  who  took  possession  of  the  deserted  part 
of  the  circle,  were,  from  their  small  numbers, 
brought  closer  in  towards  the  centre.  The  Indians 
mistook  these  movements  for  a  retreat.  Confident 
that  their  time  was  come,  they  leaped  up  on  all 
sides,  from  behind  the  trees  and  bushes,  and,  with 
infernal  screeches,  rushed  headlong  towards  the  spot, 
pouring  in  a  most  heavy  and  galling  fire.  The 
shock  was  too  violent  to  be  long  endured.  The  men 
struggled  to  maintain  their  posts,  but  the  Indians 
seemed  on  the  point  of  breaking  into  the  heart  of 
the  camp,  when  the  aspect  of  affairs  was  suddenly 
reversed.     The   two  companies,  who   had   apparently 


Cbap.  XX.] 


SUCCESSFUL  STBATAGEM. 


365 


abandoned  their  position,  were  in  fact  destined  to 
begin  the  attack;  and  they  now  sallied  out  from 
the  circle  at  a  point  where  a  depression  in  the 
ground,  joined  to  the  thick  growth  of  trees,  con- 
cealed them  from  the  eyes  of  the  Indians.  Making 
a  short  detour  through  the  woods,  they  came  round 
upon  the  flank  of  the  furious  assailants,  and  dis- 
charged a  deadly  volley  into  their  very  midst.  Nimi- 
bers  were  seen  to  fall;  yet  though  completely  sur- 
prised, and  utterly  at  a  loss  to  understand  the 
nature  of  the  attack,  the  Indians  faced  about  with 
the  greatest  intrepidity,  and  boldly  returned  the  fire. 
But  the  Highlanders,  with  yells  as  wild  as  their 
own,  fell  on  them  with  the  bayonet.  The  shock 
was  irresistible,  and  they  fled  before  the  charging 
ranks  in  a  tumultuous  throng.  Orders  had  been 
given  to  two  other  companies,  occupying  a  contig- 
uous part  of  the  circle,  to  support  the  attack  when*- 
ever  a  favorable  moment  should  occur;  and  they  had 
therefore  advanced  a  little  from  their  position,  and 
lay  close  crouched  in  ambush.  The  fugitive  multi- 
tude, pressed  by  the  Highland  bayonets,  passed 
directly  across  their  front,  upon  which  they  rose 
and  poured  among  them  a  second  volley,  no  less 
destructive  than  the  former.  This  completed  the 
rout.  The  four  companies,  uniting,  drove  the  flying 
savages  through  the  woods,  giving  them  no  time  to 
rally  or  reload  their  empty  rifles,  killing  many,  and 
scattering  the  rest  in  hopeless  confusion. 

While  this  took  place  at  one  part  of  the  circle, 
the  troops  and  the  savages  had  still  maintained  their 
respective  positions  at  the  other;  but  when  the  lat- 
ter perceived  the  total  rout  of  theu*  comrades,  and 
saw  the  troops  advancing   to   assail   them,  they  also 


l*^£     : 


I-.' 


EE' 


366 


THE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  RUN. 


[Chap.  XX. 


I    ''J 


I 


lost  heart,  and  fled.  The  discordant  outcries  which 
had  so  long  deafened  the  ears  of  the  English  soon 
ceased  altogether,  and  not  a  living  Indian  remained 
near  the  spot.  Ahout  sixty  corpses  lay  scattered 
over  the  ground.  Among  them  were  found  those  of 
several  prominent  chiefs,  while  the  blood  which 
stained  the  leaves  of  the  bushes  showed  that  num- 
bers had  fled  severely  wounded  from  the  field.  The 
soldiers  took  but  one  prisoner,  whom  they  shot  to 
death  like  a  captive  wolf.  The  loss  of  the  English 
in  the  two  battles  surpassed  that  of  the  enemy, 
amounting  to  eight  officers  and  one  hundred  and 
fifteen  men.^  ^i-.^.. 

Having    been    for    some    time    detained    by    the 
necessity   of   making    litters   for    the\  wounded,   and 


i  1 


t  ■     • 


1  MS.  Letters  —  Bouquet  to  Am- 
herst, Aug.  5,  6.  Penn.  Gaz.  1809- 
1810.  Gent  Mag.  XXXIII.  487. 
London  Mag.  for  1763, 545.  Hutch- 
ins,  Account  of  Bouquet's  Expedi- 
tion. Annual  Register  for  1763,  28. 
Mante,  493. 

The  accounts  of  this  action,  pub- 
lished in  the  journals  of  the  day,  ex- 
cited much  attention,  from  the  wild 
und  novel  character  of  this  species 
of  warfare.  A  well-written  descrip- 
tion of  the  battle,  together  with  a 
journal  of  Bouquet's  expedition  of 
the  succeeding  year,  was  published 
in  a  thin  quarto,  with  illustrations 
from  the  pencil  of  West  The 
writer,  Thomas  Hutchins,  became 
afterwards  known  as  the  author  of 
several  geographical  works  relating 
to  the  western  territories  of  Amer- 
ica. A  French  translation  of  his 
narrative  was  published  at  Amster- 
dam in  1769. 

Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Fort  Pitt, 
August  12,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1810.) 

"  We  formed  a  Circle  round  our 
Convoy  and  Wounded;  upon  which 
the  Savages  collected  themselves, 
and  continued  whooping  and  popping 


at  us  all  the  Evening.  Next  Morn- 
ing, having  mustered  all  their  Force, 
they  began  the  War-whoop,  attacking 
us  in  Front,  when  the  Colonel  feigned 
a  Retreat,  which  encouraged  the  In- 
dians to  an  eager  Pursuit,  while  the 
Light  Infantry  and  Grenadiers  rushed 
out  on  their  Right  and  Left  Flanks, 
attacking  them  where  they  little  ex- 
pected it ;  by  which  Means  a  great 
Number  of  them  ^were  killed  ;  and 
among  the  rest,  Keelyuskung,  a  Del- 
aware Chief,  who  the  Night  before, 
and  that  Morning,  had  been  Black- 
guarding us  in  English:  We  lost 
one  Man  in  the  Rear,  on  our  March 
the  Day  after. 

"  In  other  Letters  from  Fort  Pitt,  it 
is  mentioned  that,  to  a  Man,  they 
were  resolved  to  defend  the  Garrison 
(if  the  Troops  had  not  arrived)  as 
long  as  any  Ammunition,  and  Provis- 
ion to  support  them,  were  left;  and 
that  then  they  would  have  fought 
their  Way  through,  or  died  in  the 
Attempt,  rather  than  have  been  made 
Prisoners  by  such  perfidious,  cruel, 
and  Blood-thirsty  Hell-hounds." 

See  Appendix,  D. 


CHAP.XX.J  BOUQUET  REACHES  FORT  PITT. 


367 


destroying  the  stores  which  the  flight  of  most  of 
the  horses  made  it  impossible  to  transport,  the  army 
moved  'on,  in  the  afternoon,  to  Bushy  Run.  Here 
they  had  scarcely  formed  their  camp,  when  they  were 
again  fired  upon  by  a  body  of  Indians,  who,  however, 
were  soon  repulsed.  On  the  next  day,  they  resumed 
their  progress  towards  Fort  Pitt,  distant  about  twenty- 
five  miles,  and  though  frequently  annoyed  on  the 
inarch  by  petty  attacks,  they  reached  their  destination, 
on  the  tenth,  without  serious  loss.  It  was  a  joyful 
moment  both  to  the  troops  and  to  the  garrison. 
The  latter,  it  will  be  remembered,  were  left  sur- 
rounded and  hotly  pressed  by  the  Indians,  who  had 
beleaguered  the  place  from  the  twenty-eighth  of  July 
to  the  first  of  August,  when,  hearing  of  Bouquet's 
approach,  they  had  abandoned  the  siege,  and  marched 
to  attack  him.  From  this  time,  the  garrison  had  seen 
nothing  of  them  until  the  morning  of  the  tenth, 
when,  shortly  before  the  army  appeared,  they  had 
passed  the  fort  in  a  body,  raising  the  scalp-yell,  and 
displaying  their  disgusting  trophies  to  the  view  of 
the  liiglish.^ 


1  Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Fort 
Pitt,  August  12,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No. 
1810.) 

"As  you  will  probably  have  the 
Accounts  of  these  Engagements  from 
the  Gentlemen  that  were  in  them,  I 
shall  say  no  more  than  this,  that  it 
is  the  general  Opinion,  the  Troops 
behaved  with  the  utmost  Intrepidity, 
and  the  Indians  were  never  known  to 
behave  so  fiercely.  You  may  be  sure 
the  Sight  of  the  Troops  was  very 
agreeable  to  our  poor  Garrison,  being 
penned  up  in  the  Fort  from  the  27th 
of  May  to  the  9th  Instant,  and  the 
Barrack  Rooms  crammed  with  Men, 
Women,  and  Children,  tho'  provi- 
dentially no  other  Disorder  ensued 


than  the  Small-pox. — From  the  16th 
of  June  to  the  Sfeth  of  July,  we  were 
pestered  with  the  Enemy ;  sometimes 
with  their  Flags,  demanding  Con- 
ferences; at  oUier  Times  threaten- 
ing, then  soothing,  and  offering  their 
Cordial  Advice,  for  us  to  evacuate  the 
Place ;  for  that  they,  the  Delawares, 
tho'  our  dear  Friends  and  Brothers, 
could  no  longer  protect  us  from  the 
Fury  of  Legions  of  other  Nations, 
that  were  coming  from  the  Lakes, 
&c.,  to  destroy  us.  But,  finding  that 
neiUier  had  any  Effect  on  us,  they 
mastered  their  whole  Force,  in  Num- 
ber about  400,  and  began  a  most  furi- 
ous Fire  from  all  Quarters  on  the  Fort, 
which  they  continued  for  four  Days, 


*%■, 


£;i  J^ 


■■•<:■"'■' 


t         ! 


k 


368 


THE  BATTLE  OF  BUSHY  BUN. 


[Ch  >  :ac. 


The  battle  of  Bushy  Run  was  one  of  the  best  con- 
tested actions  ever  fought  between  white  men  and 
Indians.  If  there  were  any  disparity  of  numbers,  the 
advantage  was  on  the  side  of  the  troops,  and  the 
Indians  had  displayed  throughout  a  fierceness  and 
intrepidity  matclied  only  by  the  steady  valor  with 
which  they  were  met.  In  the  provinces,  the  victory 
excited  equal  joy  and  admiration,  more  especially 
among  those  who  knew  the  incalculable  difficulties 
of  an  Indian  campaign.  The  assembly  of  Fennsyl* 
vania  passed  a  vote  expressing  their  high  sense  of 
the  merits  of  Bouquet,  and  of  the  important  service 
which  he  had  rendered  to  the  province.  He  soon 
after  received  the  additional  honor  of  the  formal 
thanks  of  the  king.^ 

In  many  an  Indian  village,  the  women  cut  away 
their  hair,  gashed  their  limbs  with  knives,  and  u^ 
tered  their  dismal  bowlings  of  lamentation  for  the 
fallen.    Yet,  though  surprised  and  dispirited,  the  rage 


and  great  Part  of  the  Nights,  viz., 
from  the  28th  of  July  to  the  last  — 
Our  Commander  was  wounded  by  an 
Arrow  in  the  Leg,  and  no  other  Per- 
son, of  any  Note,  hart,  tho'  the  Balls 
were  whistUng  very  thick  about  our 
Ears.  Nine  Rank  and  File  wound- 
ed, and  one  Hnlings  having  his  Leg 
broke,  was  the  whole  of  our  Loss 
during  this  hot  Firing ;  tho'  we  have 
Reason  to  think  that  we  killed  sev- 
eral of  our  loving  Brethren,  notwith- 
standing their  Alertness  in  skulking 
behind  the  Banks  of  the  Riven,  &,c. 
—  These  Gentry,  seeing  they  could 
not  take  the  Fort,  Bhe««d  off,  and 
we  heard  no  more  of  them  till  the 
Account  of  the  above  Engagements 
came  to  hand,  when  we  were  con- 
vinced that  our  good  Brothers  did  us 
this  second  Act  of  Friendship. — 
What  they  intend  next,  God  knows, 


but  am  afraid  they  will  disperse  in 
small  Parties,  among  the  Inhabitants, 
if  not  well  defended." 

1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter— Sir 
J.  Amherst  to  Ck>lonel  Bouquet 

•'  New  York,  Slst  August,  1763. 

"The  Disposition  you  made  for 
the  Reception  of  the  Indians,  the 
Second  Day,  was  indeed  very  wisely 
Concerted,  aiid  as  happily  Ebcecuted; 
I  am  pleased  with  Every  part  of  your 
Conduct  on  the  Occasion,  which  be- 
ine  so  well  seconded  by  the  Officers 
and  Soldiers  under  your  Command, 
Enabled  you  not  only  to  Protect 
your  Large  Convoy,  but  to  rout  a 
Body  of  Savages  that  would  have 
been  very  formidable  against  any 
Troops,  but  such  as  you  had  with 
you." 


f.     . 


>1 


[,  Slst  August,  1763. 


Chap.  XX.] 


EFFECTS  OF  THE  VICTOBY. 


869 


of  the  Indians  was  too  deep  to  be  quenched,  even 
by  so  signal  a  reverse,  and  theii'  outrages  upon  the 
frontier  were  resumed  with  unabated  ferocity.  Fort 
Pitt,  however,  was  effectually  relieved,  while  the  moral 
effect  of  the  victory  enabled  the  frontier  settlers  to 
encounter  the  enemy  vnth  a  spirit  which  would  have 
been  wanting,  had  Bouquet  sustained  a  defeat. 
47 


i-Uv 


Wk 


i.  ■ 


th  as  you  bad  witl 


-;fy 


CHAPTEE    XXI. 


TIIE  IROQUOIS.  — AMBUSCADE  OF  THE  DEVIL'S  HOLE. 


While  Bouquet  was  fighting  the  battle  of  Bushy 
N  Run,  and  Dalzell  making  his  fatal  sortie  against 
the  camp  of  Pontiac,  Sir  William  Johnson  was  en- 
gaged  in  the  more  pacific,  yet  more  important  task 
I  {  of  securing  the  friendship  and  alliance  of  the  Six 
Nations.  After  several  preliminary  conferences,  he 
sent  runners  throughout  the  whole  confederacy  to  in- 
vite deputies  of  the  several  tribes  to  meet  him  in 
council  at  Johnson  Hall.  The  request  was  not  de- 
clined. From  the  banks  of  the  Mohawk,  from  the 
Oneida,  Cayuga,  and  Tuscarora  villages,  from  the  val- 
ley of  Onondaga,  where,  from  immemorial  time,  had 
burned  the  great  council-fire  of  the  confederacy,  came 
chiefs  and  warriors,  gathering  to  the  place  of  meet- 
ing. The  Senecas  alone,  the  warlike  tenants  of  the 
Genesee  valley,  refused  to  attend,  for  they  were  al- 
ready in  arms  against  the  English.  Besides  the  Iro- 
quois, deputies  came  likewise  from  the  tribes  dwelling 
along  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  within  the  settled  parts 
of  Canada. 

The  council  opened  on  the  seventh  of  September. 
The  whole  assembly  wore  a  sour  and  sullen  look; 
but  Sir  William  Johnson,  by  a  dexterous  mingling 
of  reasoning,  threats,  and  promises,  allayed  their  dis- 
content,  and  banished  the  thoughts  of  war.      They 


Chap.  XXL]      EFFECT  OP  JOHNSON'S  INFLUENCE. 


371 


JEVIL'S  HOLE. 


winced,  however,  when  he  informed  them  that,  during 
the  next  season,  an  English  army  must  pass  through 
their  country,  on  its  way  to  punish  the  refractory 
tribes  of  the  west.  "  Your  foot  is  broad  and  heavy," 
said  the  speaker  from  Onondaga;  "take  care  that  you 
do  not  tread  on  us."  Seeing  the  improved  temper 
of  his  auditory,  Johnson  was  led  to  hope  for  some 
farther  advantage  than  that  of  mere  neutrality.  He 
accordingly  urged  the  Iroquois  to  take  up  arms 
against  the  hostile  tribes,  and  concluded  his  iinal 
harangue  with  the  following  figurative  words:  "I 
now  deliver  you  a  good  English  axe,  which  I  desire 
you  will  give  to  the  warriors  of  all  your  nations,  with 
directions  to  use  it  against  these  covenant-breakers, 
by  cutting  off  the  bad  links  which  have  sullied  the 
chain  of  friendship." 

These  words  were  confirmed  by  the  presentation 
of  a  black  war-belt  of  wampum,  and  the  offer  of  a 
hatchet,  which  the  Iroquois  did  not  refuse  to  accept. 
That  they  would  take  any  very  active  and  strenuous 
part  in  the  war,  could  not  be  expected;  yet  their 
bearing  arms  at  all  would  prove  of  great  advantage, 
by  discouraging  the  hostile  Indians  who  had  looked 
upon  the  Iroquois  as  friends  and  abetters.  Some 
months  after  the  council,  several  small  parties  actu- 
ally took  the  field,  and,  being  stimulated  by  the 
prospect  of  reward,  brought  in  a  considerable  num- 
ber of  scalps  and  prisoners.^ 

Upon  the  persuasion  of  Sir  William  Johnson,  the 
tribes  of  Canada  were  induced  to  send  a  message  to 
the  western  Indians,  exhorting  them  to  bury  the 
hatchet,  while  the  Iroquois  despatched  an.  embassy  of 


1  MS.  Minntea  of  Conference  with  the  Six  Nations  and  others,  at  John- 
son Hall,  Sept  1763. 


372 


THE  raOQUOIS. 


[Chap.  XXI. 


m 


\  ! 


'^^1^ 


similar  import  to  the  Delawarcs  on  tho  Susquehanna. 
"Cousins  the  Delawares" — thus  ran  the  message  — 
"  wp  have  heard  that  many  wild  Indians  in  the  west, 
who  have  tails  like  bears,  have  let  fall  the  chain  of 
friendship,  and  taken  up  iho  hatchet  against  our 
brethren  the  English.  We  desire  you  to  hold  fast 
ilie  chain,  and  shut  your  ears  against  their  words."' 
In  spite  of  the  friendly  disposition  to  which  the 
Iroquois  had  been  brought,  the  province  >^  New 
York  suffered  not  a  little  from  the  tt  (.c'vo  'h  the 
hostile  tribes  who  ravaged  the  bord-rs  nf  ULter, 
Orange,  and  Albany  countie?,  an.l  ^^hreate/ed  to  de- 
stroy  the  upper  settlements  o^  Uio  Mohawk."  Sir 
William  Johnson  was  the  object  of  ihi  ir  especial 
enmity,  and  he  several  times  received  intimations  that 
he  was  about  to  be  attacked.  He  armed  his  tenant- 
rj',  surrounded  his  seat  of  Johnson  Hall  with  a 
stockade,  and  garrisoned  it  with  a  party  of  soldiers, 
which  Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst  had  ordered  thither  for 
his  protection.  About  this  time,  a  singular  incident 
occurred  near  the  town  of  Goshen.  Four  or  five  men 
went  out  among  the  hills  to  shoot  partridges,  and, 
chancing  to  raise  a  large  covey,  they  all  fired  then 
guns  at  nearly  the  same  moment.  The  timorous  in- 
habitants, hearing  the  reports,  concluded  that  they  came 


I  MS.  Harrisburg  Papers. 
9  Ebctract  from  a  MS.  Letter — Sir 
W.  Johnson  to  Sir  J.  Aniherat. 

"  Johnson  HaH,  Ju'.j  '•('..    IVCi. 

"I  Cannot  Conclude    t  *i,f  v 

resenting  to  Your  icy    ,ie 

great  Panic  and  uneasiness  into 
which  the  Inhabitants  of  these  parts 
are  cast,  which  I  have  endeavored  to 
Remove  by  every  Method  in  my 
power,  to  prevent  their  Abandoning 
their  Settlements  from  their  appre- 


hensions of  the  Indians:  As  they 
in  General  Confide  much  in  my  Res- 
idence, they  are  hitherto  Prevented 
from  taking  that  hsRty  Measure,  but 
should  T  h.*  Obli^eu  to  retire  (which 
I  hope  ..  not  be  the  case)  not  onljr 
mv  Own  Tenants,  who  are  upwards  of 
130  Families,  but  all  the  Rest  would 
Immediately  follow  the  Exampl' 
which  I  am  Determined  against  doinj 
'till  the  last  Extremity,  as  I  know  it 
would  prove  of  general  bad  Conse- 
quence." 


[Chap.  XXI. 


CuAP.  XXL] 


FALSE  ALARM  AT  GOSHEN. 


373 


Susquehanna, 
he  message  — 
IS  in  the  west, 

the  cham  of 
t  against  our 
1  to  hold  fast 
their  words."' 

to  which  the 
nnce    >^   New 

"itt  ic'ivii  0)  the 
'•rs  of  TJlbter, 
eatCied  to  de- 
Mohawk."    Sir 

ihilr   especial 
ntimations  that 
ned  his  tenant- 
Hall  with  a 
[rty  of  soldiers, 

ed  thither  for 
ngular  incident 
3ur  or  five  men 
partridges,  and, 

all  fired  their 

le  timorous  m- 

that  they  came 


Indians:  As  they 
Sde  much  in  my  Res- 
e  hitherto  Prevented 
t  hasty  Measure,  but 
i^eii  to  retire  (which 
be  tiie  case)  not  only 
B,  who  are  upwards  of 
at  all  the  Rest  would 
^llow  tiie  Exarapl' 
innincd  against  doinj 
tremity,  as  I  know  it 
general  bad  Conse- 


from  an  Indian  war-party,  and  instantly  fled  in  ««- 
treme    dismay,    s^i lending    the    alarm    as    they    went. 
The  neighboring  country  was  soon  in  a  panic.     The 
farmers  cu'  the  haiu    s  of  their  horses,  and,  leaving 
their  carts  and   ploughs    behind,   galloped  for  their 
lives.     Others,  snatching  up  their  children  and   their 
most  valuable  property,  made  with  all  speed  for  New 
England,  not  daring  to  pause  until  they  had  crossed 
the  Hudson.     For  several  days  the  neighborhood  was 
abandoned,  five   hundred   families   having   left   their 
habitations  and  fled.'     Not  long  after  this  absurd  af- 
fair, an  event  occurred  of  a  widely  different  character. 
Allusion   has   before  been  made  to   the    carrying- 
place  of  Niagara,  which  formed  an  »?ssential  link  in 
the  chain  of  communication  between  ^he  province  of 
New    York    and    the    interior    counuy.      Men    and 
miUtary  stores  were  conveyed  in  boats  up  the  River 
Niagara,    as    far    as  the    present    site    of   Lewiston. 
Thence  a  portage  road,  several  miles  in  .ongth,  passed 
along  the  banks  of  the   stream,   and  terminated  at 
Fort  Schlosser,  above  the  cataract.     This  road  trav- 
ersed a  region   whose  sublime  features  have  gained 
for  it  a  world-wide  renown.     The  River   Niagara,  a 
short  distance  below  the  cataract,  assumes  an  aspect 
scarcely  less  remarkable  than  that  stupendous  scene 
itself     Its  channel  is  formed  by  a  vast  ravme,  whose 
sides,  now  bare  and  weather-stained,  now  shi.ggy  with 
forest-trees,  rise  in  cliffs  of  appalling  height  a  id  steep- 
ness.    Along  this  chasm  pour  all  the  water-;  of  the 
lakes,  heaving  their  furious  surges  with  th<    power 
of  an  ocean  and  the   rage  of  a   mountain   torrent. 
About  three  miles  below  the  cataract,  the  precipices 

•      ^  1  Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1809. 

FF 


i&     ^  — 


« 
I* 


,\ 


IV' 


i 


y< 


374 


AMBUSCADE  OF  THE  DEVIL'S  HOLE.      [Chap.  X-\I. 


•  » 
11 


which  form  the  eastern  wall  of  the  ravine  are  broken 
by  an  abyss  of  awful  depth  and  blackness,  bearing 
at  the  present  day  the  name  of  the  Devil's  Hole. 
In  its  shallowest  part,  the  precipice  sinks  sheer  down 
to  the  depth  of  eighty  feet,  where  it  meets  a  chaotic 
mass  of  rocks,  descending  with  an  abrupt  declivity  to 
unseen  depths  below.  "Within  the  cold  and  damp 
recesses  of  the  gulf,  a  host  of  forest-trees  have  rooted 
themselves;  and,  standing  on  the  perilous  brink,  one 
may  look  down  upon  the  mingled  foliage  of  ash, 
poplar,  and  maple,  while,  above  them  all,  the  spruce 
and  fir  shoot  their  sharp  and  rigid  spires  upward 
into  sunlight.  The  roar  of  the  convulsed  river  swells 
heavily  on  the  ear,  and,  far  below,  its  headlong  waters 
may  be  discerned  careering  in  foam  past  the  openings 
of  the  matted  foliage. 

On  the  thirteenth  of  September,  a  numerous  train 
of  wagons  and  pack  horses  proceeded  from  the  lower 
landing  to  Fort  Schlosser,  and  on  the  following  morn- 
ing set  out  on  their  return,  guarded  by  an  escort  of 
twenty-four  soldiers.  They  pursued  their  slow  prog- 
ress until  they  reached  a  point  where  the  road  passed 
along  the  brink  of  the  Devil's  Hole.  The  gnlf 
yawned  on  their  left,  while  on  their  right  the  road 
was  skirted  by  low  and  densely  wooded  hills.  Sud- 
denly they  were  greeted  by  the  blaze  and  clatter  of 
a  hundred  rifles.  Then  followed  the  startled  cries 
of  men,  and  the  bounding  of  maddened  horses.  At 
the  next  instant,  a  host  of  Indians  broke  screeching 
from  the  woods,  and  rifl.e  but  and  tomahawk  finished 
the  bloody  work.  All  was  over  in  a  moment.  Horses 
leai^d  the  precipice ;  men  were  driven  shrieking  into 
the  abyss;  teams  and  wagons  went  over,  crashiiifjf  to 


fr 


>  \ 


atoms  amoni;  the 


rocks  below.     Tradition  rehites  that  ■  tli 


OLE.     [Chap.  XXI. 


Chap.  XXI.) 


THE  CONVOY  ATTACKED. 


375 


the  drummer  boy  of  the  detachment  was  caught,  in 
his  fall,  among  the  branches  of  a  tree,  where  he 
hung  suspended  by  his  drum-strap.  Being  but  slight- 
ly injured,  he  disengaged  himself,  and,  hiding  in  the 
recesses  of  the  gulf,  finally  escaped.  One  of  the 
teamsters  also,  who  was  wounded  at  the  first  fire, 
contrived  to  crawl  into  the  woods,  where  he  lay  con- 
cealed till  the  Indians  had  left  the  place.  Besides 
these  two,  the  only  survivor  v/as  Stedman,  the  con- 
ductor of  the  convoy,  who,  being  well  mounted,  and 
seeing  the  whole  party  forced  helplessly  towards  the 
precipice,  wheeled  his  horse,  and  resolutely  spurred 
through  the  crowd  of  Indians.  One  of  them,  it  is 
said,  seized  his  bridle;  but  he  freed  himself  by  a 
dexterous  use  of  his  knife,  and  plunged  into  the 
woods,  untouched  by  the  bullets  which  whistled  about 
his  head.  Flying  at  full  speed  through  the  forest, 
he  reached  Fort  Schlosser  in  safety. 

The  distant  sound  of  the  Indian  rifles  had  been 
heard  by  a  party  of  soldiers,  who  occupied  a  small 
fortified  camp  near  the  lower  landing.  Forming  in 
haste,  they  advanced  eagerly  to  the  rescue.  In  an- 
ticipation of  this  movement,  the  Indians,  who  were 
nearly  five  hundred  in  number,  had  separated  into 
two  parties,  one  of  which  had  stationed  itself  at  the 
Devil's  Hole,  to  waylay  the  convoy,  while  the  other 
foi-med  an  ambuscade  upon  the  road  a  mile  nearer 
the  landing-place.  The  soldiers,  marching  precijj- 
itately,  and  huddled  in  a  close  body,  were  suddenly 
assailed  by  a  volley  of  rifles,  which  stretched  half 
their  number  dead  upon  the  road.  Then,  rushing 
froiii  the  forest,  the  Indians  cut  down  the  survivors 
with  merciless  ferocity.  A  small  remnant  only  escaped 
the   massacre,  and   fled   to    Fort    Niagara    with    the 


li  m 


^:^. 
\ 


376 


AMBUSCADE  OF  THE  DEVIL'S  HOLE.     [Chap.  XXI. 


V^ 


t  I' 


tidings.  Major  Wilkins,  who  commanded  at  this 
post,  lost  no  time  in  marching  to  the  spot,  with 
nearly  the  whole  strength  of  his  garrison.  Not  an 
Indian  was  to  be  found.  At  the  two  places  of 
ambuscade,  about  seventy  dead  bodies  were  counted, 
naked,  scalpless,  and  so  horribly  mangled  that  many 
of  them  could  not  be  recognized.  All  the  wagons 
had  been  broken  to  pieces,  and  such  of  the  horsps 
as  were  not  driven  over  the  precipice  had  been  car- 
ried  off,  laden,  doubtless,  with  the  plunder.  The 
ambuscade  of  the  Devil's  Hole  has  gained  a  tra* 
ditionary  immortality,  adding  fearful  interest  to  a 
scene  whose  native  horrors  need  no  aid  from  the 
imagination.^ 


1  MS.  Letter  —  Amherst  to  Egre- 
mont,  October  13.  Two  anonymoas 
letters  from  officers  at  Port  Niagara, 
September  16  and  17.  LjfeofMaiy 
Jemison.  Appendix,  MS.  Johnson 
Papers. 

One  of  the  actors  in  the  tragedy,  a 
Seneca  warrior  named  Blacksnake, 
was  living  a  few  years  since  at  a 
very  advanced  age.  He  described 
the  scene  with  great  animation  to  a 
friend  of  the  writer,  and  as  he  related 
how  the  English  were  forced  over 
the  precipice,  his  small  eyes  glittered 
like  those  of  the  serpent  whose  name 
he  bore. 

Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Niagara, 
September  16,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1815.) 

"  On  the  first  hearing  of  the  Firing 
by  the  Convoy,  Capt.  Johnston,  and 
three  Subalterns,  marched  with  about 
80  Men,  mostly  of  Game's  Light  In- 
fantry, who  were  in  a  htUe  Camp  ad- 
jacent ;  they  had  scarce  Tune  to  form 
when  the  Indians  appeared  at  the 
above  Pass ;  our  People  fired  briskly 
upon  them,  but  was  instantly  sur- 
rounded, and  the  Captain  who  com- 
manded mortally  wounded  the  first 
Fire ;  the  3  Subalterns  also  were  soon 
after  killed,  on  which  a  general  Coh- 


1  \ 

twsiork  ensued:  The  Indians  rushed 
in  on  ail  Sides,  and  cut  about  60  or 
70  Men  in  Pieces,  including  the  Con 
voy :  Ten  of  our  Men  are  all  we  can 
yet  leant  have  made  their  Escape; 
they  came  here  through  the  Woods 
Yesterday.  From  many  Circum- 
stances, it  is  believed  the  Senecas 
have  a  chief  Hand  in  this  Affair." 

Extract  from  a  Letter — Niagara, 
September  17,  (Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1815.) 

"  Wednesday  the  14th  List  a  large 
Body  of  Indiana,  some  say  300,  oth- 
ers 4  or  500,  came  down  upon  th9 
Carrying-Place,  attacked  the  Wag« 
gon  Escort,  which  consisted  of  a 
Serjeant  and  24  Men.  This  small 
Body  immediately  became  a  Sacri- 
fice, only  two  Waggoners  escaped. 
Two  Companies  of  Light  Infantry 
(the  General's  and  La' Hunt's)  that 
were  encamped  at  the  Lower  Land- 
ing, hearing  the  Fire,  instantly  rushed 
out  to  their  Relief,  headed  by  Lieuts. 
George  Campbell,  and  Frazicr,  Lieu- 
tenant Rosco,  of  the  Artillery,  and 
Lieutenant  Deaton,  of  the  Provin- 
cials; this  Party  had  not  marched 
above  a  Mile  and  Half  when  they 
were  attacked,  surrounded,  and  al- 
liiOBt  every  Man  cut  to  Pieces ;  tJis 


[OLE.     [Chap.  XXI. 


Chap.  XXI.] 


DISASTEB  ON  LAKE  ERIE. 


377 


The  Seneca  warriors,  aided  probably  by  some  of 
the  western  Indians,  were  the  authors  of  this  unex- 
pected attack.  Their  hostility  did  not  end  here. 
Several  weeks  afterwards.  Major  Wilkins,  with  a 
force  of  six  hundred  regulars,  collected  with  great 
effort  throughout  the  provinces,  was  advancing  to 
the  relief  of  Detroit.  As  the  boats  were  slowly 
forcing  their  way  upwards  against  the  swift  cur- 
rent above  the  Falls  of  Niagara,  they  were  assailed 
by  a  mere  handful  of  Indians,  thrown  into  con- 
fusion, and  driven  back  to  Fort  Schlosser  with 
serious  loss.  The  next  attempt  was  more  fortunate, 
the  boats  reaching  Lake  Erie  without  farther  attack; 
but  the  inauspicious  opening  of  the  expedition  was 
followed  by  results  yet  more  disastrous.  As  they 
approached  their  destination,  a  violent  storm  overtook 
them  in  the  night.  The  frail  bateaux,  tossing  upon 
the  merciless  waves  of  Lake  Erie,  were  overset, 
driven  ashore,  and  many  of  them  dashed  to  pieces. 
About  seventy  men  perished,  all  the  ammunition  and 
stores  were  destroyed,  and  the  shattered  flotUla  was 
forced  back  to  Niagara.^ 

Officers  were  all  killed,  it  is  reported,  i  MS.  Diary  of  an  officer  in  Wil- 

on  the  Enemy's  first  Fire ;  the  Sav-  kins'  expedition  against  the  Indians 

ages   rushed   down   upon  them  in  at  Detroit. 
tfiree  Columns." 

48  FF* 


*   ^y ;; 


..^iJttii/fi.'. 


I! 


i.^- 


V*« 


P^  v4.  ^ 


J' 


.^?i>iYi.^ 


i|.| 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

DESOLATION   OP   THE  FRONTIERS.     -'W^'-^i- 

l-fU'.4i     ihtr. 

The  advancing  frontiers  of  American  civilization 
have  always  nurtured  a  class  of  men  of  striking  and 
peculiar  character.  The  best  examples  of  this  char- 
acter  have,  perhaps,  been  found  among  the  settlers 
of  Western  Virginia,  and  the  hardy  progeny  who 
have  sprung  from  that  generous  stock.  The  Virgin- 
ian  frontiersman  was,  as  occasion  called,  a  farmer,  a 
hunter,  and  a  warrior,  by  turns.  The  well-beloved 
rifle  was  seldom  out  of  his  hand,  and  he  never 
deigned  to  lay  aside  the  fringed  frock,  moccasons, 
and  Indian  leggins,  which  formed  the  appropriate 
costimie  of  the  forest  ranger.  Concerning  the  busi- 
ness, pleasures,  and  refinements  of  cultivated  life,  he 
knew  little,  and  cared  nothing;  and  his  manners 
were  usually  rough  and  obtrusive  to  the  last  degree. 
Aloof  from  mankind,  he  lived  in  a  world  of  his 
own,  which,  in  his  view,  contained  all  that  was  de- 
serving of  admiration  and  praise.  He  looked  upon 
himself  and  his  compeers  as  models  of  prowess  and 
manhood,  nay,  of  all  that  is  elegant  and  polite ;  and 
the  forest  gallant  regarded  with  peculiar  compla- 
cency his  o'svn  half-savage  dress,  his  swaggering 
gait,  and  his  backwoods  jargon.  He  was  wilful, 
headstrong,  and  quarrelsome;  frank,  straightforward, 
brave    as    the    bravest,    and    utterly 


aiiu. 


■i^  ',:y'^f4^  ^ii!*; 


CHAP.XXnJ       THE  VIRGINIAN  BACKWOODSMAN. 


379 


intolerant  of  arbitrary  control.  His  self-confidence 
mounted  to  audacity.  Eminently  capable  of  heroism, 
both  in  action  and  endurance,  he  viewed  every 
species  of  efieminacy  with  supreme  contempt ;  and, 
accustomed  as  he  was  to  entire  self-reliance,  the 
mutual  dependence  of  conventional  life  excited  his 
especial  scorn.  With  all  his  ignorance,  he  had  a 
mind  by  nature  quick,  vigorous,  and  penetrating; 
and  his  mode  of  life,  while  it  developed  the  daring 
energy  of  his  character,  wrought  some  of  his  facul- 
ties to  a  high  degree  of  acuteness.  Many  of  his 
traits  have  been  reproduced  in  his  offspring.  From 
him  have  sprung  those  hardy  men  whose  struggles 
and  sufferings  on  the  bloody  ground  of  Kentucky 
will  always  form  a  striking  page  in  American  his- 
tory, and  that  band  of  adventurers  before  whose 
headlong  charge,  in  the  valley  of  Chihuahua,  neither 
breastworks,  nor  batteries,  nor  fivefold  odds  could 
avail  for  a  moment. 

At  the  period  of  Pontiac's  war,  the  settlements  of 
Virginia  had  extended  as  far  as  the  AUeghanies,  and 
several   small   towns  had   already  sprung  up  beyond 
the  Blue  Ridge.     The  population  of  these  beautiful 
valleys  was,  for  the  most  part,  thin  and  scattered,  and 
the  progress  of  settlement  had  been  greatly  retarded 
by  Indian    hostilities,  which,  during   the   early  years 
of  the  French  war,  had   thrown  these  borders  into 
total    confusion.      They    had     contributed,    however, 
to   enhance   the   martial    temper   of  the   people,  and 
give  a  warlike  aspect  to  the  whole  frontier.     At  in- 
tervals,  small   stockade  forts,  containing  houses   and 
cabins,  had  been   erected   by  the  joint   labor   of  the 
inhabitants ;    and   hither,   on    occasion   of  alarm,  the 
settlers  of  the  neiehborhood  conarreo-ated  for  refuge, 


/"■      6-1,; 


■^; 


»- 


380 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FRONTIERS.      [Chap.  3001 


remaining  in  tolerable  security  till  the  danger  was 
past.  Many  of  the  inhabitants  were  engaged  /or  a 
great  part  of  the  year  in  hunting,  an  occupation 
upon  which  they  entered  with  the  keenest  relish.' 
Well  versed  in  woodcraft,  unsurpassed  as  marksmen, 
and  practised  in  all  the  wiles  of  Indian  war,  they 
would  have  formed,  under  a  more  stringent  organiza- 
tion,  the  best  possible  defence  against  a  savage 
enemy;  but  each  man  came  and  went  at  his  own 
sovereign  will,  and  discipline  and  obedience  were  re- 
pugnant to  all  his  habits. 

The  frontiers  of  Maryland  and  Virginia  closely 
resembled  each  other,  but  those  of  Pennsylvania  had 
some  peculiarities  of  their  own.  The  population  of 
this  province  was  of  a  most  motlpy  complexion, 
being  made  up  of  members  of  various  nations,  and 
numerous  religious  sects,  English,  Irish,  German, 
Swiss,  Welsh,  and  Dutch;  Quakers,  Presbyterians, 
Lutherans,  Dunkers,  Mennonists,  and  Moravians. 
Nor  is  this  catalogue  by  any  means  complete.  The 
Quakers,  to  whose  peaceful  temper  the  rough  fron- 
tier offered  no  attraction,  were  confined  to  the  east- 
em  parts  of  the  province.  Cumberland  county, 
which  lies  west  of  the  Susquehanna,  and  may  be 
said  to  have  formed  the  frontier,  was  then  almost 
exclusively  occupied  by  the  Irish  and  their  descend- 
ants, who,  however,  were  neither  of  the  Koman  faith, 


1  "  I  have  often  seen  tJiom  get  up 
early  in  Uie  morning  at  tliis  season, 
walk  hastily  out,  and  look  anxiously 
to  the  woods,  and  snuff  tlie  autumnal 
winds  with  tlie  highest  rapture,  then 
return  into  the  house,  and  cast  a  quick 
and  attentive  look  at  the  rifle,  which 
wns  always  suspended  to  a  joist  by  a 
rouple  of  buck's  horns,  or  little  forks. 
Ilis  hunting  dog,  understojiding  the 


intentions  of  his  master,  would  wag 
his  tail,  and,  by  every  blandishment 
in  his  power,  express  his  readiness 
to  accompany  him  to  the  woods."— 
Doddridge,  Jvotes  on  Western  Va.  and 
Pa.  124. 

For  a  view  of  tlie  state  of  the 
frontier,  see  also  Kercheval,  Hist,  of 
the  Valley  of  Virginia;  and  Smytli, 
Travels  in  America. 


RS.      [Chap.  XXH 


CuAP.  XXn.]    CONSTERNATION  OF  THE  SETTLERS. 


381 


nor  of  Hibernian  origin,  being  emigrants  from  the 
colony  of  Scotch  which  forms  a  numerous  and  thrifty 
population  in  the  north  of  Ireland.  In  religious  faith, 
they  were  stanch  and  zealous  Presbyterians.  Long 
residence  in  the  province  had  modified  their  national 
character,  and  imparted  many  of  the  peculiar  traits 
of  the  American  backwoodsman ;  yet  the  nature  of 
their  religious  tenets  produced  a  certain  rigidity  of 
temper  and  demeanor,  from  which  the  Virginian  was 
wholly  free.  They  were,  nevertheless,  hot-headed  and 
turbulent,  often  setting  law  and  authority  at  defiance. 
The  counties  east  of  the  Susquehanna  supported  a 
mixed  population,  among  which  was  conspicuous  a 
swarm  of  German  peasants,  who  had  been  inun- 
dating the  country  for  many  years  past,  and  who  for 
the  most  part  were  dull  and  ignorant  boors;  a  char- 
acter not  wholly  inapplicable  to  the  great  body  of 
their  descendants.  The  Swiss  and  German  sectaries 
called  Meimonists,  who  were  numerous  in  Lancaster 
county,  professed,  like  the  Quakers,  principles  of 
non-resistance,  and  refused  to  bear  arms.^ 

It  was  upon  this  mingled  population  that  the 
storm  of  Indian  war  was  now  descending  with  ap- 
palling fury  —  a  fury  unparalleled  through  all  past 
and  succeeding  years.  For  hundreds  of  miles  from 
north  to  south,  the  country  was  wasted  with  fire 
and  steel.  It  would  be  a  task  alike  useless  and  re- 
volting to  explore,  through  all  its  details,  this  horrible 
monotony  of  blood   and   havoc.^    The   country  was 


•i!' 


1  For  an  account  of  the  population 
of  Pennsylvania,  see  Rupp's  two  his- 
tories of  York  and  Lancaster,  and 
of  Lebanon  and  Berks  counties. 
See  also  the  History  of  Cumberland 
County,  and  the  Penn.  Hist  Coll. 


2  "There  are  many  Letters  in 
Town,  in  which  the  Distresses  of 
the  Frontier  Inhabitants  are  set  forth 
in  a  most  moving  and  striking  Man- 
ner ;  but  as  these  Letters  are  pretty 
much  the  same,  and  it  would  be  end- 


m-: 


382 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FRONTIERS.      [Chap.  XXU. 


filled  with  the  wildest  dismay.  The  people  of  Vir- 
ginia  betook  themselves  to  their  forts  for  refuge. 
But  those  of  Pennsylvania,  ill  supplied  with  such 
asylums,  fled  by  thousands,  and  crowded  in  upon  the 
older  settlements.  The  ranging  parties  who  visited 
the  scene  of  devastation  beheld,  among  the  ruined 
farms  and  plantations,  sights  of  imspeakable  horror, 
and  discovered,  in  the  depths  of  the  forest,  the  half, 
consumed  bodies  of  men  and  women,  still  bound  fast 
to  the  trees,  where  they  had  perished  in  the  fiery 


torture.* 


\r  'J  i^'.iJiAiim.  hm-i    A'yi  •^im:tiriS   iittf:if:}  ^\^t^A  '■ 


less  to  insert  the  whole,  the  following 
ia  the  Substance  of  some  of  them, 
ai  near  as  we  can  recollect,  viz. :  — 
"  That  the  Indiana  had  set  Fire  to 
Houses,  Barns,  Com,  Hay,  and,  in 
short,  to  eveiy  Thing  that  was  com- 
bustible, so  that  the  whole  Country 
seemed  to  be  in  one  general  Blaze  — 
That  the  Miseries  and  Distresses  of 
the  poor  People  were  really  shocking 
to  Humanity,  and  beyond  the  Power 
of  Language  to  describe  —  That 
Carlisle  was  become  the  Barrier,  not 
a  single  Individual  being  beyond  it 
—  That  every  Stable  um  riovel  in 
the  Town  was  crowded  with  miser- 
able Refugees,  who  were  reduced  to 
a  State  of  Beggary  and  Despair; 
their  Houses,  Cattle  and  Harvest  de- 
stroyed ;  and  from  a  plentiful,  inde- 
pendent People,  they  were  become 
real  Objects  of  Charity  and  Commis- 
eration—  That  it  was  most  dismal 
to  see  the  Streets  filled  with  People, 
in  whose  Countenances  mieht  be  dis- 
covered a  Mixture  of  Grief,  Madness 
and  Despair ;  and  to  hear,  now  and 
then,  the  Sighs  and  Groans  of  Men, 
the  disconsolate  Lamentations  of 
Women,  and  the  Screams  of  Chil- 
dren, who  had  lost  their  nearest  and 
dearest  Relatives :  And  that  on  both 
Sides  of  the  Susquehannah,  for  some 
Miles,  the  Woods  were  filled  with 
poor  Families,  and  their  Cattle,  who 
make  Fires,  and  live  like  the  Sav- 
ages."—i-cnn.  Gsz.  No.  1805.     .    ., 


Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter,  signa- 
ture erased  —  Staunton,  July  26. 

"  Since  the  reduction  of  uie  Regi. 
ment,  I  have  lived  in  the  Country, 
which  enable^  me  to  enform  yr  Ho'' 
of  some  particulars,  I  think  it  is  a 
duty  incumbent  on  me  to  do.  I  can 
assert  that  in  eight  years'  service,  I 
never  knew  such  a  general  conster- 
nation as  the  late  irruption  of  Vi- 
dians has  occasioned.  Should  they 
make  a  second  attempt,  I  am  assured 
the  country  will  be  laid  desolate, 
which  I  attribute  to  the  following 
reasons.  The  sudden,  great,  and 
unexpected  slaughter  of  the  people; 
their  being  destitute  of  arms  and 
ammunition ;  the  country  Lieut,  being 
at  a  distance  and  not  exerting  him- 
self, his  orders  are  neglected;  the 
most  of  the  militia  officers  being 
unfit  persons,  or  unwilling,  not  to 
say  afraid  to  meet  an  Enemy;  too 
busy  with  their  harvest  to  run  a  risk 
in  the  field.  The  Inhabitants  left 
without  protection,  without  a  person 
to  stead  them,  have  nothing  to  do 
but  fly,  as  the  Indians  are  saving 
and  caressing  all  the  negroes  they 
take ;  should  it  produce  an  insurrec- 
tion, it  may  be  attended  with  the 
most  serious  consequences." 

1  "  To  Col.  Francis  Lee,  or,  in  his 
Absence,  to  the  next  Commanding 
Officer  in  Loudoun  County."  (Penn. 
Gaz.  No.  1805.) 

"I    examined    the    Express  tliat 


IRS.      [Chap.  XXII. 


CHAP.XXn.]       -^Jr?  ATTACK  ON  GREENBRIEB. 


383 


i  .' 


Among  the  numerous  war-parties  which  were  now 
ravaging  the  borders,  none  was  more  Qv  .uctive  than 
a  band,  about  sixty  in  number,  which  ascended  the 
Kenawha,  and  pursued  its  desolating  course  among 
the  settlements  about  the  sources  of  that  river. 
They  passed  valley  after  valley,  sometimes  attacking 
the  inhabitants  by  surprise,  and  sometimes  murdering 
them  under  the  mask  of  friendship,  until  they  came 
to  the  little  settlement  of  Greenbrier,  where  nearly 
a  hundred  of  the  people  were  assembled  at  the  for- 
tified house  of  Archibald  Glendenning.  Seeing  two 
or  three  Indians  approach,  whom  they  recognized  as 
former  acquaintances,  they  suffered  them  to  enter 
without  distrust;  but  the  new-comers  were  soon 
joined  by  others,  until  the  entire  party  were  gathered 
in  and  around  the  buildings.  Some  suspicion  was 
now  awakened,  and,  in  order  to  propitiate  the  dan- 
gerous guests,  they  were  presented  with  the  carcass 
of  an  elk  lately  brought  in  by  the  hunters.  They 
immediately  cut  it  up,  and  began  to  feast  upon  it. 
The  backwoodsmen,  with  their  families,  were  as- 
sembled in  one  large  room;  and  finding  themselves 
mingled  among  the  Indians,  and  embarrassed  by  the 
presence  of  the  women  and  children,  they  remained 
indecisive  and  irresolute.  Meanwhile,  an  old  woman, 
who   sat   in    a   comer   of   the   room,   and  who   had 


'  •■  ■  PI 


1  ■» 


1- 


brought  this  Letter  from  Winches- 
ter to  Loudoun  County,  and  he  in- 
formed me  that  he  was  employed  as 
an  Express  from  Fort  Cumbeiland  to 
Winchester,  which  Place  he  left  the 
4ti<  Instant,  and  that  passing  from 
the  Fort  to  Winchester,  he  saw  lying 
on  the  Road  a  Woman,  who  had 
been  just  scalped,  and  was  then  in 
the  Affonies  of  Death,  with  her 
Brains  hanging  over  her  Skull;  his 
Comnaniona   made    a    Proposal     to 


knock  her  on  the  Head,  to  put  an 
End  to  her  Agony,  but  this  fbcpress 
apprehending  tlie  Indians  were  near 
at  Hand,  and  not  thinking  it  safe  to 
lose  any  Time,  rode  off,  and  left  the 
poor  Woman  in  the  Situation  they 
found  her." 

The  circumstances  referred  to  in 
the  text  are  mentioned  in  several 
pamphlets  of  the  day,  on  the  author- 
ity of  James   Smith,  a    prominent 

InnHfir  nf  thi»  mrnTPra. 


\  ; 


','/ 


884 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FRONTIERS.      [Cuap.  XXII. 


■f 


lately  received  some  slight  accidental  injury,  asked 
one  of  the  warriors  if  he  could  cure  the  wound. 
He  replied  that  he  thought  he  could,  and,  to  make 
good  his  words,  killed  her  with  his  tomahawk. 
This  was  the  signal  for  a  scene  of  general  butchery. 
A  few  persons  made  their  escape;  the  rest  were 
killed  or  captured.  Glendenning  snatched  up  one 
of  his  children,  and  rushed  from  the  house,  but  was 
shot  dead  as  he  leaped  the  fence.  A  negro  woman 
gained  a  place  of  concealment,  whither  she  was  fol- 
lowed  by  her  screaming  child;  and,  fearing  lest  the 
cries  of  the  boy  should  betray  her,  she  turned  and 
killed  him  at  a  blow  Among  the  prisoners  was  the 
wife  of  Glendenning,  a  woman  of  a  most  masculine 
spirit,  who,  far  from  being  overpowered  by  what  she 
had  seen,  was  excited  to  the  extremity  of  rage, 
charged  her  captors  with  treachery,  cowardice,  and 
ingratitude,  and  assailed  them  with  a  tempest  of 
abuse.  Neither  the  tomahawk,  which  they  bran- 
dished over  her  head,  nor  the  scalp  of  her  murdered 
husband,  with  which  they  struck  her  in  the  face, 
could  silence  the  undaunted  virago.  When  the  party 
began  their  retreat,  bearing  with  them  a  great  quan- 
tity of  plunder,  packed  on  the  horses  they  had 
stolen,  Glendenning's  wife,  with  her  infant  child, 
was  placed  among  a  long  train  of  captives,  guarded 
before  and  behind  by  the  Indians.  As  they  defiled 
along  a  narrow  path  which  led  through  a  gap  in 
the  mountains,  she  handed  the  child  to  the  woman 
behind  her,  and,  leaving  it   to  its  fate,^  slipped  into 

1  Her  absence  was  soon  perceived,  ineiTectual,  he  dashed  out  its  brains 

on  which  one  of  the  Indians  remarked  against  a  tree.    This  was  related  by 

that  he  would  bring  the  cow  back  to  one  of  tlie  captives  who  was  taken 

her  calf,  and,  seizing  the  child,  forced  to  the  Indian  villages  and  afterward3 

it  to  scream  violently.    This  proving  redeemed.    . 


^1 


;RS.      [Chap.  XXII. 


CiiAP.XXII.]  ATTACK  ON  A  SCHOOL-H      SE. 


3dd 


the  bushes  and  escaped.  Being  well  acquainted  with 
the  woods,  she  succeeded,  before  nightfall,  in  reach- 
ing the  spot  where  the  ruins  of  her  dwelling  had 
not  yet  ceased  to  bum.  Here  she  sought  out  the 
body  of  her  husband,  and  covered  it  with  fence  rails, 
to  protect  it  from  the  wolves.  When  her  task  was 
complete,  and  when  night  closed  around  her,  the 
bold  spirit  which  had  hitherto  borne  her  up  sud- 
denly gave  way.  The  recollection  of  the  horrors 
she  had  witnessed,  the  presence  of  the  dead,  the 
darkness,  the  solitude,  and  the  gloom  of  the  sur- 
rounding forest,  wrought  upon  her  till  her  terror 
rose  to  ecstasy,  and  she  remained  until  daybreak, 
crouched  among  the  bushes,  haunted  by  the  threat- 
ening apparition  of  an  armed  man,  who,  to  her 
heated  imagination,  seemed  constantly  approaching  to 
murder  her.' 

Some  time  after  the  butchery  at  Glendenning's 
house,  an  outrage  was  perpetrated,  unmatched,  in  its 
fiend-like  atrocity,  through  all  the  annals  of  the 
war.  In  a  solitary  place,  deep  within  the  settled 
limits  of  Pennsylvania,  stood  a  small  school-house, 
one  of  those  rude  structures  of  logs  which,  to  this 
day,  may  be  seen  in  some  of  the  remote  northern 
districts  of  New  England.  A  man  chancing  to  pass 
by  was  struck  by  the  unwonted  silence,  and,  push- 
ing open  the  door,  he  looked  within.  In  the  centre 
lay  the  master,  scalped  and  lifeless,  with  a  Bible 
clasped  in  his  hand,  while  around  the  room  were 
strewn  the  bodies  of  his  pupils,  nine  in  number, 
miserably  mangled,  though  one  of  them  still  retained 
u  spark   of  life.     It  was   afterwards  known  that  the 

1  Doddridge,    Notes,    221.     MS.    from  tlie  relation  of  Glendenning's 
Narrative,  written  by  Colonel  Stuart    wife.    ;    -  )    • 

49  GG 


^^\ 


\  M' 


1  Tfl 


It.: 


[^'l 


jp.:,.  :}ni 


386 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FU0NTIER8.      [Chap.  XXII. 


deed  was  committed  by  three  or  four  warriors  from 
a  village  near  the  Ohio;  and  it  is  but  just  to  ob- 
serve that,  when  they  returned  home,  their  conduct 
was  disapproved  by  some  of  the  tribe.' 

Page  after  page  might  be  filled  with  records  like 
these,  for  the  letters  and  journals  of  the  day  are  r(>. 
plete  with  narratives  no  less  tragical.  Districts  were 
depopulated,  and  the  progress  of  the  country  put 
back  for  years.  Those  small  and  scattered  settle- 
ments  which  formed  the  feeble  van  of  advancing  civ- 
ilization  were  involved  in  general  destruction,  and  tlie 
fate  of  one  may  stand  for  the  fate  of  all.  In  many 
a  woody  valley  of  the  AUeghanies,  the  axe  and  fiip. 
brand  of  the  settlers  had  laid  a  "wide  space  open  to 
the  sun.  Here  and  there,  about  the  clearing,  stood 
rough  dwellings  of  logs,  surrounded  by  enclosures 
and  cornfields,  while,  farther  out  towards  the  verge 
of  the  woods,  the  fallen  trees  still  cumbered  tlie 
ground.  From  the  clay-built  chimneys  the  smoke 
rose  in  steady  columns  against  the  dark  verge  of 
the  forest ;  and  the  afternoon  sun,  which  brightened 
the  tops  of  the  mountains,  had  already  left  the  val- 
ley   in    shadow.     Before    many    hours    elapsed,   the 


1  Gordon,  Hist.  Penn.  Appendix. 
Bard,  Narrative. 

"  Several  small  parties  went  on  to 
different  part*  of  the  settlements  :  it 
happened  that  tlirec  of  them,  whom 
I  was  well  acquainted  with,  camo 
from  the  neighbourhood  of  where  I 
was  taken  from  —  they  were  young 
fellows,  perhaps  none  of  them  more 
tlian  twenty  years  of  age,  —  they 
Came  to  a  school-house,  where  they 
murdered  and  uculped  the  master, 
and  all  the  scholars,  except  one,  who 
survived  aflcr  he  was  scalped,  a  boy 
about  ten  years  old,  and  a  full  cousin 
of  mine.    I  «»»■  the  Indians  when 


they  returned  home  with  the  scalps ; 
some  of  the  old  Indians  were  very 
much  displeased  at  them  for  killing 
so  many  children,  especially  .Xeep- 
paii^h-iohese,  or  Niglit  Walker,  an 
old  chief,  or  half  king,  —  he  ascribed 
it  to  cowardice,  which  was  the  {great- 
est affront  he  could  offer  thcni."— 
JM'Cullough,  Narrative, 

Extract  from  an  anonymous  Let- 
ter —  Philadelphia,  August  30, 17tj4. 

"The  Lad  found  alive  in  the 
School,  and  said  to  be  since  dead,  is, 
I  am  informed,  yet  alive,  and  in  a 
likely  Way  to  recover." 


RS.       [Chap.  XXH. 


{  IIAF.  XXII] 


SUFFERINGS  OF  CAPTIVIiS. 


387 


night  was  lighted  up  with  the  glare  of  blazing 
dwellings,  and  the  forest  rang  with  the  slirieks  of 
the  murdered  inmates.' 

Among  the  records  of  that  day's  sufferings  and 
disasters,  none  are  more  striking  than  the  narratives 
of  those  whose  lives  were  spared  that  they  might  be 
borne  captive  to  the  Indian  villages.  Exposed  to  the 
extremity  of  hardship,  they  were  urged  forward  with 
the  assurance  of  being  tomahawked  or  burnt  in  case 
their  strength  should  fail  them.  Some  made  their 
escape  from  the  clutches  of  their  tormentors;  but  of 
these  not  a  few  found  reason  to  repent  their  success, 
lost  in  a  trackless  wilderness,  and  perishing  miserably 
from  hunger  and  exposure.  Such  attempts  could 
seldom  be  made  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  settle- 
ments. It  was  only  when  the  party  had  penetrated 
deep  into  the  forest  that  theii-  vigilance  began  to 
relax,   and   their   captives   were    bound   and  guarded 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Thomas  Cresap  to  Governor  Sharpe. 

"  Old  Town,  July  loth,  1763. 

"  May  it  please  y'  Excellency : 

"I  take  this  opportunity  in  the 
heiffht  of  confusion  to  acquaint  you 
with  our  unhappy  and  most  wretched 
situation  at  this  time,  being  in  hourly 
expectation  of  bein^  massacred  by 
our  barbarous  and  mhuman  enemy 
the  Indians,  we  having  been  three 
days  successively  attaclced  by  them, 
viz.  the  13th,  14th,  and  this  instant." 

"I  have  enclosed  a  list  of  the  des- 
olate men  and  women,  and  children 
wlio  have  fled  to  my  house,  which  is 
enclosed  by  a  small  stockade  for  safe- 
ty, by  which  you  sec  what  a  number 
of  poor  souls,  destitute  of  every  neces- 
sary of  life,  are  here  penned  up,  and 
likely  to  be  butchered  without  im- 
mediate relief  and  assistance,  and  can 


expect  none,  unless  from  the  province 
to  which  they  belong.  I  shall  sub- 
mit to  your  wiser  judgment  the  best 
and  most  effectual  method  for  such 
relief,  and  shall  conclude  witli  hoping 
we  shall  have  it  in  time." 

Extract  from  a  Letter — Frederick 
Town,  July  19,  17(53,  (Penn.  Gaz. 
No.  1807.) 

"  Every  Day,  for  some  Time  past, 
has  offered  the  melancholy  Seen*? 
of  poor  distressed  Families  driving 
downwards,  through  this  Town,  with 
their  Effects,  who  nave  deserted  their 
Plantations,  for  Fear  of  falling  into 
the  cruel  Hands  of  our  Savage  Ene- 
mies, now  daily  seen  in  the  Woods. 
And  never  was  Panic  more  general 
or  forcible  than  that  of  the  Back 
Inhabitants,  wiiose  Terrors,  at  this 
Timp,  exceed  what  followed  on  the 
Defeat  of  General  Braddock,  when 
the  Frontiers  lay  open  to  the  Incur- 
sions of  both  French  and  Indians." 


i>i,! 


»I{ 


388 


DESOLATION  OF  TIIE  TRONTIERS.      [Chap.  XXII, 


with  less  rigorous  severity.  Then,  perhaps,  whcTi 
encamped  by  the  side  of  some  mountain  brook,  and 
when  the  warriors  lay  lost  in  sleep  around  their  fire, 
the  prisoner  would  cut  or  burn  asunder  the  cords 
that  bound  his  wrists  and  ankles,  and  glide  stealthily 
into  the  woods.  With  noiseless  celerity,  he  pursues 
his  flight  over  the  fallen  trunks,  through  the  dense 
undergrowth,  and  the  thousand  pitfalls  and  impcdi- 
ments  of  the  forest;  now  striking  the  rough,  hard 
trunk  of  a  tree,  now  tripping  among  the  insidious 
network  of  vines  and  brambles.  All  is  darkness 
around  him,  and  through  the  black  masses  of  foli- 
age  above  he  can  catch  but  dubious  and  uncertain 
glimpses  of  the  dull  sky.  At  length,  he  can  hear 
the  gurgle  of  a  neighboring  brook,  and,  turning  to- 
wards it,  he  wades  along  its  pebbly  channel,  fearing 
lest  the  soft  mould  and  rotten  wood  of  the  forest 
might  retain  traces  enough  to  direct  the  bloodhound 
instinct  of  his  pursuers.  With  the  dawn  of  the  misty 
and  cloudy  morning,  he  is  still  pushing  on  his  way, 
when  his  attention  is  caught  by  the  spectral  figure 
of  an  ancient  birch-tree,  which,  with  its  white  bark 
hanging  about  it  in  tatters,  seems  wofuUy  familiar 
to  his  eye.  Among  the  neighboring  bushes,  a  blue 
smoke  curls  faintly  upward,  and,  to  his  horror  and 
lamazemcnt,  he  recognizes  the  very  fire  from  whicli 
he  had  fled  a  few  hours  before,  and  the  piles  of 
spruce  boughs  upon  which  the  warriors  had  slept. 
They  have  gone,  however,  and  arc  rcinging  the  forest, 
in  keen  pursuit  of  the  fugitive,  who,  in  his  blind 
flight  amid  tlic  darkness,  had  circled  round  to  the 
very  point  whence  he  set  out ;  a  mistake  not  uncom- 
mon with  careless  or  inexperienced  travellers  in  the 
woods.     Almost  in  despair,  he  leaves  tlie  ill-omened 


RS.       [Chap.  XXII, 


Chap.  XXII] 


THE  ESCAPED  CAPTIVE. 


389 


spot,  and  directs  his  course  eastward  with  greater 
care,  the  bark  of  the  trees,  rougher  and  thicker  on 
the  northern  side,  furnishing  a  precarious  clew  for 
his  guidance.  Around  and  above  him  nothing  can 
be  seen  but  the  same  endless  monotony  of  brown 
trunks  and  green  leaves,  closing  him  in  with  an  im- 
pervious screen.  He  reaches  the  foot  of  a  mountain, 
and  toils  upwards  against  the  rugged  declivity;  but 
when  he  stands  on  the  summit,  the  view  is  still  shut 
out  by  impenetrable  thickets.  High  above  them  all 
shoots  up  the  tall,  gaunt  stem  of  a  blasted  pine-tree, 
and,  in  his  eager  longing  for  a  view  of  the  surround- 
ing objects,  he  strains  every  muscle  to  ascend.  Dark, 
wild,  and  lonely,  the  wilderness  stretches  around 
him,  half  hidden  in  clouds,  half  open  to  the  sight, 
mountain  and  valley,  crag  and  glistening  stream;  but 
nowhere  can  he  discern  the  trace  of  human  hand 
or  any  hope  of  rest  and  harborage.  Before  he  can 
look  for  relief,  league  upon  league  must  be  passed, 
without  food  to  sustain  or  weapon  to  defend  him. 
He  descends  the  mountain,  forcing  his  way  through 
the  undergrowth  of  laurel  bushes,  while  the  clouds 
sink  lower,  and  a  stonn  of  sleet  and  rain  descends 
upon  the  waste.  Through  such  scenes,  and  under 
such  exposures,  he  presses  onward,  sustaining  life 
with  the  aid  of  roots  and  berries  or  the  flesh  of  rcj)- 
tiles.  Perhaps,  in  the  last  extremity,  some  party  of 
rangers  find  him,  and  bring  him  to  a  place  of  refuge ; 
perhaps,  by  his  own  efforts,  he  reaches  some  frontier 
post,  where  rough  lodging  and  rough  fare  seem  to 
him  unheard-of  luxury;  or,  perhaps,  spent  with  fa- 
tigue and  famine,  he  pcrislics  in  despair,  a  meagre 
banquet  for  the  wolves. 
Vv'ithin    two    or    three   weeks    after    tlie   war   had 


/  rr 


GG 


390 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FRONTIERS.       ICiiap.  XXII. 


l<r.  .• 


broken  out,  the  older  towns  and  settlements  of  Penn- 
sylvania were  crowded  with  refugees  from  the  deserted 
frontier,  reduced,  in  many  cases,  to  the  extremity  of 
destitution.^  Sermons  were  preached  in  their  behalf 
at  Philadelphia;  the  religious  societies  united  for 
their  relief,  and  liberal  contributions  were  added  by 
individuals.  "While  private  aid  was  thus  generously 
bestowed  upon  the  sufferers,  the  government  showed 
no  such  promptness  in  arresting  the  public  calamity. 
Early  in  July,  Governor  Hamilton  had  convoked  the 
Assembly,  and,  representing  the  distress  of  the  bor- 
ders,  had  urged  them  to  take  measures  of  defence.- 
But  the  provincial  government  of  Pennsylvania  was 
more  conducive  to  prosperity  in  time  of  peace  than 
to  prompt  efficiency  in  time  of  war.  The  Quakers, 
who  held  a  majority  in  the  Assembly,  were,  from 
principle  and  practice,  the  reverse  of  warlike,  and, 
regarding  the  Indians  with  a  blind  partiality,  were 
reluctant  to  take  measures  against  them.  Proud,  and 
with  some  reason,  of  the  justice  and  humanity  which 
had  marked  their  conduct  towards  the  Indian  race, 
they  had  learned  to  regard  themselves  as  its  advo- 
cates and  patrons,  and  their  zeal  was  greatly  sharpened 
by  opposition  and  political  prejudice.  They  now  pre- 
tended   that    the    accounts    from    the    frontier   were 


'ttm 


'  Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Win- 
chester, Virginia,  June  22(1,  (Penn. 
(In/,.  No.  1801.) 

"  La«t  Night  I  reached  tliis  Place. 
I  Itave  been  at  Fort  Cumberland  sev- 
eral Days,  but  the  Indians  having 
killed  nine  People,  and  burnt  several 
Houses  near  Fort  Bedford,  made  mo 
think  it  prudent  to  remove  from  those 
Purt-s,  from  which,  I  suppose,  near 
.500  Families  have  nin  away  within 
this  week,  —  I  assure  you  it  was  a 
u'lOst  iiit'luricliojy  Sight,  to  see  such 


Numbers  of  poor  People,  wiio  had 
abandoned  their  Settlements  in  such 
Consternation  and  Hurry,  that  they 
Iiad  hardly  any  thing  witii  tiiciu  but 
their  Children.  And  what  is  still 
worse,  I  dare  say  there  is  not  Money 
enough  amongst  the  whole  Fuinilics 
to  maintain  a  fillli  Part  of  them  till 
the  Fall ;  and  none  of  the  poor  Crea- 
tures can  get  a  Hovel  to  .shelter  them 
from  the  VVeatJier,  bvit  lie  about 
scattered  in  the  Woods." 

*   V  oiub  01  ^fvssumuiy,  v  .  :4ov. 


ERS.       [Ciup.  XXII. 


Chap.  XXI  J       FEEBLE  MEASURES  OF  DEFENCE. 


391 


grossly  exaggerated ;  and,  finding  this  ground  untena- 
ble, they  alleged,  with  better  show  of  reason,  that  the 
Indians  were  driven  into  hostility  by  the  ill  treat- 
ment of  the  proprietaries  and  their  partisans.  They 
recognized,  however,  the  necessity  of  defensive  meas- 
ures, and  accordingly  passed  a  biU  for  raising  and 
equipping  a  force  of  seven  hundred  men,  to  be  com- 
posed of  frontier  farmers,  and  to  be  kept  in  pay  only 
during  the  time  of  harvest.  They  were  not  to  leave 
the  settled  parts  of  the  province,  to  engage  in  offen- 
sive operations  of  any  kind,  nor  even  to  perform  gar- 
rison duty,  their  sole  object  being  to  enable  the  people 
to  gather  in  their  crops  unmolested.  -.   v,    v 

This  force  was  divided  into  numerous  small  de- 
tached parties,  who  were  stationed  here  and  there,  at 
farm-houses  and  hamlets  on  both  sides  of  the  Sus- 
quehanna, with  orders  to  range  the  woods  daily  from 
post  to  post,  thus  forming  a  feeble  chain  of  defence 
across  the  whole  frontier.  The  two  companies  as- 
signed to  Lancaster  county  were  placed  under  the 
command  of  a  clergyman,  Mr.  John  Elder,  pastor  of 
the  Presbyterian  church  of  Paxton,  a  man  of  worth 
and  education,  and  held  in  great  respect  upon  the 
borders.  He  discharged  his  military  functions  with 
address  and  judgment,  drawing  a  cordon  of  troops 
across  the  front  of  the  county,  and  preserving  the 
inhabitants  free  from  attack  for  a  considerable  time.^ 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Jolin  Elder  to  Governor  Penn. 

"  Paxton,  4th  August,  1763. 
"Sir: 

"TIio  service  your  Hon'  was 
pleased  to  appoint  mo  to,  I  have  per- 
i'ormcd  to  the  best  of  my  power ;  tho' 
not  witli  success  equal  to  my  desires. 


However,  both  companies  will,  I  im- 
agine, be  complete  in  a  few  days: 
there  are  now  upwards  of  30  men  in 
each,  exclusive  of  officers,  who  are 
now  and  have  been  employed  since 
their  enlistment  in  such  service  as  is 
tliought  most  safe  and  encouraging 
to  tlie  Frontier  inhabitants,  t.'io  are 
here  and  every  where  else  in  tlie 


it    V 


392 


DESOLATION  Or  THE  FRONTIERS.      (Chap.  XXII. 


The  feeble  measures  adopted  by  the  Pennsylvania 
Assembly  highly  excited  the  wrath  of  Sir  Jeffrey  Am- 
herst, and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  give  his  feelings 
an  emphatic  expression.  "  The  conduct  of  the  Penn- 
sylvania legislature,"  he  writes,  "is  altogether  so 
infatuated  and  stupidly  obstinate,  that  I  want  words 
to  express  my  indignation  thereat ;  but  the  colony  of 
Virginia,  I  hope,  will  have  the  honor  of  not  only 
driving  the  enemy  from  its  own  settlements,  but  that 
of  protecting  those  of  its  neighbors,  who  ha^^  not 
spirit  to  defend  themselves." 

Virginia  did,  in  truth,  exhibit  a  vigor  and  activity 
not  unworthy  of  praise.  Unlike  Pennsylvania,  she 
had  the  advantage  of  an  existing  militia  law,  and  the 
House  of  Burgesses  was  neither  embarrassed  by  scru- 
ples against  the  shedding  of  blood,  nor  by  any  pecu- 
liar tenderness  towards  the  Indian  race.  The  house, 
however,  was  not  immediately  summoned  together,  and 
the  governor  and  council,  without  awaiting  the  delay 
of  such  a  measure,  called  out  a  thousand  of  the 
militia,  five  hundred  of  whom  were  assigned  to  the 
command  of  Colonel  Stephen,  and  an  equal  number 
to  that  of  Major  Lewis.'  The  presence  of  these 
men,  most  of  whom  were  woodsmen  and  hunters,  re- 
stored order  and  confidence  to  the  distracted  borders, 
and  the  inhabitants,  before  pent  up  in  their  forts,  or 
flying  before  the  enemy,  now  took  the  field,  in  con- 
junction with  the  militia.  Many  severe  actions  were 
fought,  but  it  seldom  happened  that  the  Indians 
could  stand  their  ground  against  the  border  riflemen. 


back  conntries  quite  sunk  and  dis-  seek  safety  rather  in  fliplit  tlian  in 

piritcd,  so  tliat  it's  to  be  feared  that  opposing  the  Savage  Foe." 

on  any  attack  of  the  enemy,  a  con-        i  Sparks,  Writings  of  Washing- 

Kidcrablc  part  of  the  country  will  be  ton,  II.  340. 

evacuated,  as  all  bOein  inclinable  to 


JS.      (Chap.  XXII. 


Cuxp.XXII.1         COURAGE  OF  THE  BORDERERS. 


393 


The  latter  were  uniformly  victorious  until  the  end 
of  the  summer,  when  Captains  Moffat  and  Phillips, 
with  sixty  men,  were  lured  into  an  ambuscade,  and 
routed,  with  the  loss  of  half  their  number.  A  few 
weeks  after,  they  took  an  ample  revenge.  Learning 
by  their  scouts  that  more  than  a  hundred  warriors 
wore  encamped  near  Jackson's  River,  preparing  to  at- 
tack the  settlements,  they  advanced  secretly  to  the 
spot,  and  set  upon  them  with  such  fury,  that  the 
whole  party  broke  away  and  fled,  leaving  weapons, 
provision,  articles  of  dress,  and  implements  of  magic, 
in  the  hands  of  the  victors. 

Meanwhile  the  frontier  people  of  Pennsylvania,  find- 
ing that  they  could  hope  for  little  aid  from  govern- 
ment, bestirred  themselves  with  admirable  spirit  in 
their  own  defence.  The  march  of  Bouquet,  and  the 
victory  of  Bushy  Run,  caused  a  temporary  lull  in  the 
storm,  thus  enabling  some  of  the  bolder  inhabitants, 
who  had  fled  to  Shippensburg,  Carlisle,  and  other 
places  of  refuge,  to  return  to  their  farms,  where  they 
determined,  if  possible,  to  remain.  With  this  reso- 
lution, the  people  of  the  Great  Cove,  and  the  adjacent 
valleys  beyond  Shippensburg,  raised  among  them- 
selves a  small  body  of  riflemen,  which  they  placed 
under  the  command  of  James  Smith,  a  man  whose 
resolute  and  daring  character,  no  less  than  the  na- 
tive vigor  of  his  intellect,  gave  him  great  popularity 
and  influence  with  the  borderers.  Having  been,  for 
several  years,  a  prisoner  among  the  Indians,  he  was 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  their  mode  of  fighting. 
He  trained  his  men  in  the  Indian  tactics  and  disci- 
pline, and  directed  them  to  assume  the  dress  of  war- 
riors, and  paint  their  faces  red  and  black,  so  that, 
in  appearance,  they  were  hardly  distinguishable  from, 
50 


'^i'  t 


394 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FRONTIERS.      [Chap.  XXII. 


the  enemy.  ^  Tims  equipped,  they  scoured  the  woods 
in  front  of  the  settlements,  had  various  skinnislies 
with  the  enemy,  and  discharged  their  difficult  task 
with  such  success  that  the  inhabitants  of  the  neigh- 
borhood  were  not  again  driven  from  their  homes. 

The  attacks  on  the  Pennsylvania  frontier  were 
known  to  proceed,  in  great  measure,  from  several 
Indian  villages,  situated  high  up  the  west  branch 
of  the  Susquehanra,  and  inhabited  by  a  debauched 
rabble  composed  of  various  tribes,  of  whom  the  most 
conspicuous  were  Delawares.  To  root  out  this  nest 
of  banditti  would  be  the  most  effectual  means  of 
protecting  the  settlements,  and  a  hundred  and  ten 
men  offered  themselves  for  the  entv?rprise.  They 
marched  about  the  end  of  August ;  but  on  their  way 
along  the  banks  of  the  Susquehanna,  they  encoun- 
tered fifty  warriors,  advancing  against  the  borders. 
The  Indians  had  the  first  fire,  and  drove  in  the  van- 
guard of  the  white  men.  A  hot  fight  ensued.  The 
warriors  fought  naked,  painted  black  from  head  to 
foot,  so  that,  as  they  leaped  among  the  trees,  they 
seemed  to  their  opponents  like  demons  of  the  forest. 
They  were  driven  back  with  heavy  loss,  and  the  vol- 
untcers  returned  in  triumph,  though  without  accom- 
plishing the  object  of  the  expedition,  for  which,  in- 
deed, their  numbers  were  scarcely  adequate.^ 


1  Petition  of  the  InJmbitants  of  the 
Groat  Cove.  Smith,  Narrative.  This 
is  a  highly  interesting  account  of  the 
writer's  captivity  among  the  Indians, 
and  his  adventures  during  several 
.lucccoding  years.  In  the  war  of  the 
revolution,  he  acted  the  part  of  a  zeal- 
ous patriot  lie  lived  until  the  year 
IHIQ,  about  which  time  tlie  western 
Indians  having  broken  out  into  hos- 
tility, he  gave  his  country  the  benefit 


of  his  ample  experience,  by  publish- 
ing a  treatise  on  the  Indian  mode  of 
warfare.  In  Kentucky,  where  he 
spent  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  ho  was 
much  respected,  and  several  times 
elected  to  the  legislature.  This  nar- 
rative may  be  found  in  Drake's  Trage- 
dies of  the  Wilderness,  and  in  several 
other  similar  collections. 
•-'  Penn.  Gaz.  No.  leil. 


RS.      [CuAP.  XXII, 


Ci:.vp.  XXII] 


ARMSTRONG'S  EXPEDITION. 


395 


Within    a  few   weeks    after  their   return,   Colonel 
Armstrong,   a  veteran   partisan   of  the   French  war, 
raised  three  hundred  men,  the  best  in   Cumberland 
county,  with  a  \iew  to   the  eiFectual   destruction  of 
the  Susquehanna  villages.     Leaving  their  rendezvous 
at  the  crossings   of  the  Juniata,  about  the  first  of 
October,    they   arrived   on   the    sixth    at   the    Great 
Island,  high  up  the  west  branch.     On  or  near  this 
island  were  situated  the  principal  villages  of  the  ene- 
my.   But  the  Indians  had  vanished,  abandoning  their 
hou:'is,  their  cornfields,  their  stolen  horses  and  cattle, 
and  the  accumulated  spoil  of  the  settlements.     Leav- 
ing a  detachment  to  burn  the   towns  and  lay  waste 
the  fields,  Armstrong,  with  the  main  body  of  his  men, 
followed  close  on  the  trail  of  the  fugitives,  and,  pur- 
suing them  through  a  rugged  and  difficult  country, 
soon  arrived  at    another   village,  thirty   miles    above 
the  former.     His  scouts  informed  him  that  the  place 
was  full   of  Indians,  and  his  men,  forming  a  circle 
around  it,  rushed  in  upon  the  cabins  at  a  given  sig- 
nal.    The  Indians  were  gone,  having  stolen  away  in 
such  haste  that  the  hominy  and  bear's  meat,  prepared 
for  their  meal,  were  found  smoking  upon  their  dishes 
of   birch   bark.      Having   burned   the   place    to    the 
ground,  the  party  returned  to  the  Great  Island,  and, 
rejoining    their    companions,    descended   the    Susque- 
hanna,  reaching    Fort   Augusta  in  a  wretched  con- 
dition, fatigued,  half  famished,  and  quarrelling  among 
themselves.^ 

Scarcely  were   they  returned,  w^hen   another  expe- 
dition was  set  on  foot,  in  which  a  portion  of  them 


1^1 


"m 


W,    \  I 


■  ■  if*  ■ 


1  Perm.  Gaz.  No3.  1816-1818.    MS.  Letter  —  Graydon  to  Bird,  Octo- 
ber 12. 


396 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FRONTIERS.      [Ciup.  XXII. 


«r? 


« 


were  persuaded  to  take  part.  During  the  previoiu 
year,  a  body  of  settlers  from  Connecticut  had  pos- 
sessed themselves  of  the  valley  of  Wyoming,  on  the 
east  branch  of  the  Susquehanna,  in  defiance  of  the 
government  of  Pennsylvania,  and  to  the  great  dis- 
j)leasurc  of  the  Indians.  The  object  of  the  expedition 
was  to  remove  these  settlers,  and  destroy  their  corn 
and  provisions,  which  might  otherwise  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  enemy.  The  party,  composed  chiefly  of 
volunteers  from  Lancaster  county,  set  out  from  liar- 
ris'  Ferry,  under  the  command  of  Major  Clayton, 
and  reached  Wyoming  on  the  seventeenth  of  October. 
They  were  too  late.  Two  days  before  their  arrival,  a 
massacre  had  been  perpetrated,  the  fitting  precmsor 
of  that  subsequent  scene  of  blood  which,  embalmed 
in  the  poetic  romance  of  Campbell,  has  made  the 
name  of  Wyoming  a  household  word.  The  settle- 
ment was  a  pile  of  ashes  and  cinders,  and  the  bodies 
of  its  miserable  inhabitants  offered  frightful  proof  of 
the  cruelties  which,  with  diabolical  ingenuity,  had 
been  inflicted  upon  them.^  A  large  war-party  had 
fallen  upon  the  place,  killed  and  carried  off  more 
than  twenty  of  the  people,  and  driven  the  rest,  men, 
women,  and  children,  in  terror  to  the  mountains. 
Gaining  a  point  which  commanded  the  whole  ex- 
panse of  the  valley  below,  the  fugitives  looked  back, 
and  saw  the  smoke  rolling  up  in  volumes  from  their 
burning  homes,  while  the  Indians  could  be  discerned 
roaming  about  in  quest  of  plunder,  or  feasting  in 
groups    upon    the    slaughtered    cattle.     One    of  the 

I  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  —  posed  to  bo  put  in  red  liot,  and  several 

Paxton,  October  23.  of  tlic  men  nad  awls  thrust  into  their 

"  The   woman   was    roasted,  and  eyes,  and  spears,  arrows,  pitchforks, 

had  two  hinges  in  her  hands,  sup-  etc.,  sticking  in  their  bodies." 


IS.      [Chap.  XXII. 


Ciup.  XXII.] 


QUAKER  PREJUDICE. 


397 


principal  settlers,  a  man  named  Hopkins,  was  sep- 
arated from  the  rest,  and  driven  into  the  woods. 
Finding  himself  closely  pursued,  he  crept  into  the 
huge,  hc^l. ,v  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree,  while  the  In- 
dians passed  without  observing  him.  They  soon  re- 
turned to  the  spot,  and  ranged  the  surrounding 
woods  like  hounds  at  fault,  two  of  them  approach- 
ing so  near,  that,  as  Hopkins  declared,  he  could 
hear  the  bullets  rattle  in  their  pouches.  The  search 
was  unavailing;  but  the  fugitive  did  not  venture 
from  his  place  of  concealment  until  extreme  himger 
forced  him  to  return  to  the  ruined  settlement  in 
search  of  food.  The  Indians  had  abandoned  it 
some  time  before,  and,  having  found  means  to  restore 
his  exhausted  strength,  he  directed  his  course  towards 
the  settlements  of  the  Delaware,  which  he  reached 
after  many  days  of  wandering.^ 

Having  buried  the  dead  bodies  of  those  who  had 
fallen  in  the  massacre,  Clayton  and  his  party  re- 
turned to  the  settlements.  The  Quakers,  who  seemed 
resolved  that  they  would  neither  defend  the  people 
of  the  frontier  nor  allow  them  to  defend  themselves, 
vehemently  inveighed  against  the  several  expeditions 
up  the  Susquehanna,  and  denounced  them  as  sedi- 
tious and  murderous.  Urged  by  their  blind  prejudice 
in  favor  of  the  Indians,  they  insisted  that  the  bands 
of  the  Upper  Susquehanna  were  friendly  to  the  Eng- 
lish; whereas,  with  the  single  exception  of  a  few 
Moravian  converts  near  Wyoming,  who  had  not  been 
molested  by  the  whites,  there  could  be  no  rational 
doubt  that  those  savages  nourished  a  rancorous  and 
malignant    hatred    against    the    province.      But    the 


P 


ma-  t 


-.iV.S  ■'•■1 


\  ?■  i      1 


,  I*!' 


1  MS.  Elder  Papers.    Chapman,  Hist.  Wyoming,  70.    Miner,  Hist  Wy- 
oming, 5G. 

HH 


398 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FKONTIERS.       [Chap.  XXII. 


Quakers,  removed  by  their  situation  from  all  fear  of 
the  tomahawk,  securely  vented  their  spite  against 
the  borderers,  and  doggedly  closed  their  ears  to  the 
truth.^  Meanwhile,  the  people  of  the  frontier  be- 
sieged the  Assembly  with  petitions  for  relief;  but 
littb  heed  was  given  to  their  complaints. 

Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst  had  recently  resigned  his  office 
of  commander-in-chief,  and  General  Gage,  a  man  of 
less  efficiency  than  his  vigorous  and  able  predecessor, 
was  appointed  to  succeed  him.  Immediately  before 
his  departure  for  England,  Amherst  had  made  a 
requisition  upon  the  several  provinces  for  troops  to 
march  against  the  Indians  early  in  the  spring,  and 
the  first  act  of  Gage  was  to  confirm  this  requisition. 
New  York  was  called  upon  to  furnish  fourteen  hun- 
dred men,  and  New  Jersey  six  hundred.'  The 
demand  was  granted,  on  condition  that  the  New 
England    provinces    should    also    contribute    a    just 


1  It  has  already  been  atated  that 
the  Quakers  were  confined  to  the 
eastern  parts  of  the  province.  That 
their  security  was  owing  to  their 
local  situation,  rather  than  to  the 
kind  feeling  of  the  Indians  towards 
them,  is  shown  by  the  fact,  that,  of 
the  very  few  of  their  number  who 
lived  in  exposed  positions,  several 
were  killed.  One  of  them  in  partic- 
ular, John  Fincher,  seeing  his  house 
about  to  be  attacked,  went  out  to 
meet  the  warriors,  declared  that  he 
was  a  Quaker,  and  begged  for  mercy. 
The  Indians  laughed,  and  struck  him 
dead  with  a  tomahawk. 

3  MS.  Gage  Papei-s. 

Extract    from   a   MS.   Letter  — 

William  Smith,  Jr.,  to . 

"  New  York,  22nd  Nov.,  1763. 

"  Is  not  Mr.  Amherst  the  happiest 
of  men  to  get  out  of  this  Trouole  so 
seasonably?  At  lost  he  was  obliged 
to  submit,  to  give  the  despised  In- 


dians BO  great  a  mark  of  his  Consid- 
eration, as  to  confess  he  could  not 
defend  us,  and  to  make  a  requisition 
of  1400  Provincials  by  the  Spring— 
600  more  he  demands  from  New  Jer- 
sey. Our  People  refused  all  but  a 
few  for  immediate  Defence,  con- 
ceiving that  all  the  Northern  Colo- 
nies ought  to  contribute  equally,  and 
upon  an  apprehension  tliat  he  has 
called  for  too  insufficient  an  aid. 

"  Is  not  Gage  to  be  pitied  ?  The 
war  will  be  a  tedious  one,  nor  can  it 
be  glorious,  even  tho'  attended  with 
Success.  Instead  of  decisive  Battles, 
woodland  skirmishes  —  instead  of 
Colours  and  Cannon,  our  Trophies 
will  be  stinking  scalps.  —  Heaven 
preserve  you,  my  Friend,  from  a  War 
conducted  by  a  spirit  of  Murder 
rather  than  of  brave  and  generous 
offence." 


'    4* 


1R8.      [Chap.  XXII. 


itribute    a    ''ust 


Chap.  XXn.] 


POLITICAL  DISPUTES. 


399 


proportion  to  the  general  defence.     This  condition  wus 
complied  with,  and  the  troops  were  raised.    ^  **? 

Pennsylvania  had  been  required  to  furnish  a  thou- 
sand men;  but  in  this  qtarter  many  difficulties  inter- 
vened. The  Assembly  of  the  province,  never  prompt 
to  vote  supplies  for  military  purposes,  was  now  em- 
broiled in  that  obstinate  quarrel  with  the  propri- 
etors, which  for  years  past  had  clogged  all  the 
wheels  of  government.  The  proprietors  insisted  on 
certain  pretended  rights,  which  the  Assembly  stren- 
uously opposed;  and  the  governors,  who  represented 
the  proprietary  interest,  were  bound  by  imperative 
instructions  to  assert  these  claims,  in  spite  of  all 
opposition.  On  the  present  occasion,  the  chief  point 
of  dispute  related  to  the  taxation  of  the  proprietary 
estates,  the  governor,  in  conformity  with  his  instruc- 
tions, demanding  that  they  should  be  assessed  at  a 
lower  rate  thar.  other  lands  of  equal  value  in  the 
province.  The  Assembly  stood  their  ground,  and 
refused  to  remove  the  obnoxious  clauses  in  the  sup- 
ply bill.  Message  after  message  passed  between  the 
house  and  the  governor;  mutual  recrimination  en- 
sued, and  Ul  blood  was  engendered.  At  length,  in 
new  of  the  miserable  condition  of  the  province,  the 
desperation  of  the  frontier  people,  and  the  danger 
of  a  general  insurrection,  the  Assembly  consented  to 
waive  their  rights,  and  passed  the  bill  under  protest, 
voting  fifty  thousand  pounds  for  the  service  of  the 
campaign.^  The  quarrel  was  so  long  protracted  that 
the  bill  did  not  receive  the  governor's  assent  until 
the  spring,  and  in  the  mean  time  the  province  had 
become  the  scene  of  most  singular  disorders. 


« 


1  Gordon,  Hist  Penn.  414.    Penn.  Gaz.  No.  1840.    Votes  of  Assembly, 
V.325. 


400 


DESOLATION  OF  THE  FBONTIERS.      [Chaf.XXIL 


!  These  disturbances  may  be  ascribed,  in  some  degree, 
to  the  renewed  activity  of  the  enemy,  who,  during  a 
great  part  of  the  autumn,  had  left  the  borders  iu 
comparative  quiet.  As  the  winter  closed  in,  their 
attacks  became  more  frequent,  and  districts,  re- 
peopled  during  the  interval  of  calm,  were  again 
made  desolate.  Again  the  valleys  were  illumined 
by  the  flames  of  burning  houses,  and  families  fled 
shivering  through  the  biting  air  of  the  winter  night, 
while  the  fires  behind  them  shed  a  ruddy  glow 
upon  the  snow-covered  mountains.  The  scouts, 
who  on  snowshoes  explored  the  track  of  the  ma- 
rauders, found  the  bodies  of  their  victims  lying  in 
the  forest,  stripped  naked,  ■  and  frozen  to  marble 
hardness.  The  distress,  wrath,  and  terror  of  tlie 
borderers  produced  results  sufficiently  remarkable  to 
deserve  a  separate  examination.  v 


^-,i*^,       '~<<^-         *-''!i 
i. 


I' 

■■--,,  I.'  .-,,-,.        i         -       ■       X,    ' 


:    1  .'.■.'  /■    '• 


[BBS.      [CuAP.  XXIL 


')}     :■' ;■   -tjSftf'"- 


■,y'f- 


'  I 


VfWf 


*  >*#' 


»!''*<?>      ■\4'i'      yi-i'v:''.'--^' 


CHAPTER    XXIII.        1 

THE   INDIANS   RAISE   THE   SIEGE   OF   DETROIT. 

I  RETURN  to  the  long-forgotten  garrison  of  De- 
troit, which  was  left  still  beleaguered  by  an  increas- 
ing multitude  of  savages,  and  disheartened  by  the 
unhappy  defeat  of  Captain  Dalzell's  detachment.  The 
schooner,  so  boldly  defended  by  her  crew,  against 
a  force  of  more  than  twenty  times  their  number, 
brought  to  the  fort  a  much  needed  supply  of  pro- 
vision. It  was  not,  however,  adequate  to  the  wants 
of  the  garrison,  and  the  whole  were  put  upon  the 
shortest  possible  allowance. 

It  was  now  the  end  of  September.  The  Indians. 
w^*U  unexampled  pertinacity,  had  pressed  the  siege 
since  the  beginning  of  May;  but  at  length  theu-  im- 
wonted  constancy  began  to  fail.  The  tidings  had 
reached  them  that  Major  AMlkins,  with  a  strong 
force,  was  on  his  way  to  Detroit.  They  feared  the 
consequences  of  an  attack,  especially  as  their  am- 
munition was  almost  exhausted;  and  by  this  time, 
most  of  them  were  inclined  to  sue  for  peace,  as  the 
easiest  mode  of  gaining  safety  for  themselves,  and 
at  the  same  time  liillin^j  the  English  into  security.^ 
They  thought  that  by  this  means   they  might  retire 

1  MS.  Letter — Gatre  to  Johnson-  Dec=  25. 1763=    Pf nn,  Gm-.  No,  1827, 


61 


HH 


if 

I 


•  ■•I, 
ft 


i 

.   ^^1 

'r ^1 

402 


THE  SIEGE  OF  DETROIT  RAISED.     [Chap.  XXIIJ. 


p->-^ 


I 


unmolested   to    their   wintering    grounds,  and   renew 
the  war  with  good  hope  of  success  in  the  spring. 

Accordingly,  on  the  twelfth  of  October,  Wapocom- 
oguth,  great  chief  of  the  Mississaugas,  a  branch  of 
the  Ojibwas,  living  within  the  present  limits  of 
Upper  Canada,  came  to  the  fort  with  a  pipe  of 
peace.  He  began  his  speech  to  Major  Gladwyn, 
with  the  glaring  falsehood  that  he  and  his  people 
had  always  been  friends  of  the  English.  They  were 
now,  he  added,  anxious  to  conclude  a  formal  treaty 
of  lasting  peace  and  amity.  He  next  declared  that 
he  had  been  sent  as  deputy  by  the  Pottawattamies, 
Ojibwas,  and  Wyandots,  who  had  instructed  him  to 
say  that  they  sincerely  repented  of  their  bad  con- 
duct, asked  forgiveness,  and  humbly  begged  for 
peace.  Gladvyn  perfectly  understood  the  hoUowncss 
of  these  professions,  but  the  circumstances  in  whicli 
he  was  placed  made  it  expedient  to  listen  to  their 
overtiu'cs.  His  garrison  was  threatened  with  famine. 
and  it  was  impossible  to  procure  provision  while 
completely  surrounded  by  liostile  Indians.  He  there- 
fore replied,  that,  though  he  was  not  empowered  to 
grant  peace,  he  would  still  consent  to  a  truce.  The 
Mississauga  deputy  left  the  fort  with  this  reply,  and 
Gladwyn  immediately  took  advantage  of  this  lull  i . 
the  storm  to  collect  provision  among  the  Cana- 
dians; an  attempt  in  which  he  succeeded  so  well 
that  the  fort  was  soon  furnished  with  ii  tolerable 
supply  for  the  winter. 

The  Ottawas  alone,  animated  by  the  indomitable 
spirit  of  Pontiac,  had  refused  to  ask  for  peace,  and 
still  pei>;lstcd  in  a  course  of  petty  hostilities.  They 
fired  at  intervals  on  the  Englisli  foraging  parties. 
imtii,    on    tiie    tiilriietli    of   October,    an    unexpected 


lED.     [Chap.  XXIII. 

ids,  and  renew 
I  the  spring, 
jber,  "Wapocom- 
is,  a  branoh  of 
isent  limits  of 
dth  a  pipe  of 
lajor  Gladwyn, 
and  his  people 
.sh.  They  were 
a  formal  treaty 
ct  declared  that 

Pottawattamies, 
structed  him  to 

their  bad  con- 
Ay  begged  for 
.  the  hoUowncss 
stances  in  which 
3  listen  to  their 
led  with  famine. 

provision  while 
lans.  He  there- 
)t  empowered  to 
;o  a  truce.  Tlic 
1  this  reply,  and 
c  of  this  lull  i . 
long  the  Cana- 
icceedcd  so  well 
with   11   tolerable 

the  indomitable 
i.  for  peace,  and 
hostilities.  They 
foraging    parties. 

o»-.      ■n-i-ioviiortcd 

nil  CIIJ-V^^'J^'.-^.-     • 


Chap.  XXIII.]    LETTEB  FROM  NEYON  TO  PONTIAC. 


403 


blow  was  given  to  the  hopes  of  their  great  chief. 
French  messengers  came  to  Detroit  with  a  letter  from 
M.  Neyon,  commandant  of  Fort  Chartres,  the  principal 
post  in  the  Illinois  country.  This  letter  was  one  of 
those  which,  on  demand  of  General  Amherst,  Neyon, 
with  a  very  bad  grace,  had  sent  to  the  different  In- 
dian tribes.  It  assured  Pontiac  that  he  could  expect 
no  assistance  from  the  French;  that  they  and  the 
English  were  now  at  peace,  and  regarded  each  other 
as  brothers,  and  that  the  Indians  had  better  aban- 
don hostilities  which  could  lead  to  no  good  result.^ 
The  emotions  of  Pontiac  at  receiving  this  message 
may  be  conceived.  His  long-cherished  hopes  of  as- 
sistance from  the  French  were  swept  away  at  once, 
and  he  saw  himself  and  his  people  thrown  back 
upon  their  own  slender  resources.  In  rage  and  mor- 
tification, he  left  Detroit,  and,  with  a  number  of  his 
chiefs,  repaired  to  the  River  Maumee,  with  the  design 
of  stirring  up  the  Indians  in  that  quarter,  and  re- 
newing hostilities  in  the  spring. 

About  the  middle  of  November,  not  many  days 
after  Pontiac's  departure,  two  friendly  Wyandot  In- 
dians from  the  ancient  settlement  at  Lorette,  near 
Quebec,  crossed  the  river,  and  asked  admittance  into 
the  fort.  One  of  them  then  unslung  his  powder- 
horn,  and,  taking  out  a  false  bottom,  disclosed  a 
closcly-foldr^d  letter,  which  he  gave  to  Major  Glad- 
wyn. The  letter  was  from  Major  Wilkins,  and  con- 
tained the  disastrous  news  that  the  detachment  under 
his  command  had  been  overtaken  by  a  stonn,  that 
many  of  the  boats  had  been   wrecked,  that   seventy 


'  MS.  Lcttrc  do  M.  Ncyon  de    ment  A  ccux  de  Detroit,  h  Pondiac, 
Vallicrp,  i\  tous  les   nations   de   la    Chef  dcs  Outawas  A  Detroit, 
uviie  Riviere  et  du  Lac,  et  notum- 


r.t ». 


>»,  1 


'•«»•■  .»<. 


Ilk 


"HI 

'    'iV' 


^^. 


404 


THE  SIEGE  OF  DETROIT  RAISED.     [Chap.  XXIII. 


men  had  perished,  that  all  the  stores  and  ammunition 
had  been  destroyed,  and  the  detachment  forced  to  re- 
turn to  Niagara.  This  intelligence  had  an  effect  upon 
the  garrison  which  rendered  the  prospect  of  the  cold 
and  cheerless  winter  yet  more  dreary  and  forlorn. 

The  summer  had  long  since  drawn  to  a  close,  and 
the  verdant  landscape  around  Detroit  had  undergone 
an  ominous  transformation.  Touched  by  the  first 
October  frosts,  the  forest  glowed  like  a  bed  of 
tulips ;  and  all  along  the  river  bank,  the  painted 
foliage,  brightened  by  the  autumnal  sun,  reflected  its 
mingled  colors  upon  the  dark  water  below.  The 
western  wind  was  fraught  with  life  and  exhilaration, 
and  in  the  clear,  sharp  air,  the  form  of  the  fish- 
hawk,  sailing  over  the  distant  headland,  seemed 
almost  within  range  of  the  sportsman's  gvv. 

A  week  or  two  elapsed,  and  then  succ«  \  that 
gentler  season  which  bears  among  us  the  .  ^.iuc  of 
the  Indian  summer ;  when  a  light  haze  rests  upon 
the  morning  landscape,  and  the  many-colored  woods 
seem  wrapped  in  the  thin  drapery  of  a  veil ;  when 
the  air  is  mild  and  calm  as  that  of  early  June,  and 
at  evening  the  sun  goes  down  amid  a  warm,  volup- 
tuous beauty,  that  may  well  outrival  the  softest  tints 
of  Italy.  But  through  all  the  still  and  breathless 
afternoon,  the  leaves  have  fallen  fast  in  the  woods, 
like  flakes  of  snow,  and  every  thing  betokens  that 
the  last  melancholy  change  is  at  hand.  And,  in 
truth,  on  the  morrow  the  sky  is  overspread  with 
cold  and  stormy  clouds,  and  a  raw,  piercing  wind 
blows  angrily  from  the  north-east.  The  shivering 
sentinel  quickens  his  step  along  the  ramprrt,  and 
the  half-naked  Indian  folds  his  tattered  blanlet  close 
aroiind  liim.     The  shrivelled  leaves  are  blo^  'n  from 


SED,     [Chap.  XXHI. 


CHAP.XXm.]    INDIANS  AT  THEIR  HUNTniG-GKOUNDS.        4^05 

the  trees,  and  soon  the  gusts  are  whistlmg  and 
howling  amid  gray,  naked  twigs  and  mossy  branches. 
Here  and  there,  indeed,  the  beech-tree,  as  the  wind 
sweeps  among  its  rigid  boughs,  shakes  its  pale  as- 
semblage of  crisp  and  rustling  leaves.  The  pines 
and  firs,  with  their  rough  tops  of  dark  evergreen, 
bend  and  moan  in  the  wind,  and  the  crow  caws 
sullenly,  as,  struggling  against  the  gusts,  he  flaps 
his  black  wings  above  the  denuded  woods. 

The  vicinity  of  Detroit  was  now  almost  abandoned 
by  its  besiegers,  who  had  scattered  among  the  forests 
to  seek  sustenance  through  the  winter  for  themselves 
and  their  families.  Unlike  the  buffalo-hunting  tribes 
of  the  western  plains,  they  could  not  at  this  season 
remain  together  in  large  bodies.  The  comparative 
scarcity  of  game  forced  them  to  separate  into  small 
bands,  or  even  into  single  families.  Some  steered 
their  canoes  far  northward,  across  Lake  Huron,  while 
others  turned  westward,  and  struck  into  the  great 
wilderness  of  Michigan.  Wandering  among  forests, 
bleak,  cheerless,  and  choked  with  snow,  now  famish- 
ing with  want,  now  cloyed  with  repletion,  they 
passed  the  dull,  cold  winter.  The  chase  yielded 
their  only  subsistence,  and  the  slender  lodges,  borne 
on  the  backs  of  the  squaws,  were  their  only  cover- 
ing. Encamped  at  intervals  by  the  margin  of  some 
frozen  lake,  surrounded  by  all  that  is  most  stern 
and  dreary  in  the  aspects  of  natiu:e,  they  were  sub- 
jected to  every  hardship,  and  endured  all  with  stub- 
bom  stoicism.  Sometimes,  during  the  frosty  night, 
they  were  gathered  in  groups  about  the  flick- 
ering lodge-fire,  listening  to  traditions  of  their  fore- 
fathers, and  wild  tales  of  magic  and  incantation. 
Perhaps,  before   the   season  was   past,    some   bloody 


>• 


i^i 


406 


THE   SIEGE  OF  DETROIT  RAISED.     [Chap.  XXIII, 


flii 


feud  broke  out  among  them;  perhaps  they  were 
assailed  by  their  ancient  enemies  *he  DaL._  ^t  m ,  oi 
perhaps  some  sinister  omen  or  evil  dream  spread 
more  terror  through  the  camp  than  the  presence  of 
an  actual  danger  would  have  awakened.  With  the 
return  of  spring,  the  scattered  parties  once  more 
united,  and  moved  towards  Detroit,  to  indulge  their 
unforgotten  hatred  against  the  English. 

Detroit  had  been  the  central  point  of  the  Indian 
operations ;  its  capture  had  been  their  favorite  pro- 
ject; around  it  they  had  concentrated  theu*  greatest 
force,  and  the  failure  of  the  attempt  proved  disas- 
trous to  their  cause.  Upon  the  Six  Nations,  more 
especially,  it  produced  a  marked  effect.  The  friendly 
tribes  of  this  confederacy  were  confinned  in  their 
friendship,  while  the  hostile  Senecas  began  to  lose 
heart.  Availing  himself  of  this  state  of  things,  Sir 
William  Johnson,  about  the  middle  of  the  winter, 
persuaded  a  number  of  Six  Nation  warriors,  by  dint 
of  gifts  and  promises,  to  go  out  against  the  enemy, 
He  stimulated  their  zeal  by  offering  rewards  of  fifty 
dollars  for  the  heads  of  the  two  principal  Delaware 
chiefs.^  Two  hundred  of  them,  accompanied  by  a 
few  provincials,  left  the  Oneida  country  during  the 
month  of  February,  and  directed  their  course  soutli- 
ward.     They   had  been    out  but   a   few   days,  when 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  —  Sir 
W.  Johnson  to . 

"  For  God's  Sake  exert  yourselves 
like  Men  whoso  Honour  &  every 
thing  dear  to  them  is  now  at  stake ; 
the  General  has  great  Expectations 
from  the  success  of  your  Party,  & 
indeed  so  have  all  People  hero,  &  I 
hope  they  will  not  bo  mistak  >n,  —  in 
Order  to  Encourage  your  party  I  will, 
out  of  my  own  Pockstj  oav  tn  aiiv 


of  the  Party  50  Dollars  for  the  Head 
Men  of  tlie  Delawares  tlierc,  viz, 
Onupcraquedra,  and  50  Dollars  more 

for  the  Hflad  of  Long  Coat,  alias ,  ,  ] 

in  which  case  they  nui:  i  cither  bring 
them  alive  or  their  whole  Heads ;  tlie 
Money  shall  be  paid  to  the  Man 
who  takes  or  brings  me  them,  or 
their  Heads,  —  this  1  would  have  you 
tell  to  the  Head  i  icn  of  the  Party, 
lis  it  will  make  them  more  eaffer." 


;D.     [Chap.  XXHI. 


Chap.  XXIIL] 


TIIE  WAR  IN  THE   SOUTH. 


407 


ips  they  were 
Dah-^^iaii,  or 
dreaui  spread 
le  presence  of 
ed.  With  the 
ies  once  more 
0  indulge  their 
1. 

of  the  Indian 
II  favorite  pro- 
i  theh*  greatest 
(t  proved  disas- 
:  Nations,  more 
t.  The  friendly 
finned   in   their 

began   to  lose 
e  of  things,  Sir 

of  the  winter, 
ra  Triors,  by  dint 
linst  the  enemy, 
rewards  of  fifty 
acipal  Delaware 
ompanied  by  a 
ntry  during  the 
ir  course  south- 

"ew   days,  when 


50  Dollars  for  the  Head 
Delawares  there,  viz. 
u,  and  50  Dollans  more 

f  Long  Coat,  alias , 

they  mil:  i  cither  bring 
their  whole  Heads ;  tiie 
bo  paid  to  the  Man 
_  brings  mo  them,  or 
-  this  I  would  have  you 
ead  lien  of  the  Party, 
c  them  more  eager." 


they  found  an  encampment  of  forty  Delawares,  com- 
manded by  a  formidable  chief,  known  as  Captain 
Bull,  who,  with  his  warriors,  was  on  his  way  to  attack 
the  settlements.  They  surrounded  the  camp  undis- 
covered, during  the  night,  and  at  dawn  of  day  raised 
the  war-whoop  and  rushed  in.  The  astonished  Dela- 
wares had  no  time  to  snatch  their  arms.  They  were 
all  made  prisoners,  taken  to  Albany,  and  thence  sent 
down  to  New  York,  where  they  wore  conducted,  un- 
der a  strong  guard,  to  the  common  jaU,  the  mob 
crowding  round  them  as  they  passed,  and  admiring 
the  sullen  ferocity  of  their  countenances.  Not  long 
after  this  success.  Captain  Montour,  with  a  party  of 
provincials  and  Six  Nation  warriors,  destroyed  the 
town  of  Kanestio,  and  other  hostile  villages,  on  the 
upper  branches  of  the  Susquehanna.  This  blow,  in- 
flicted by  supposed  friends,  produced  more  effect  upon 
the  enemy  than  greater  reverses  would  have  done,  if 
encountered  at  the  hands  of  the  English  alone.^ 

The  calamities  which  overwhelmed  the  borders  of 
the  middle  provinces  were  not  unfelt  at  the  south. 
It  was  happy  for  the  people  of  the  Carolinas  that 
the  Cherokees,  who  bad  broken  out  against  them 
three  years  before,  had  at  that  time  received  a  chas- 
tisement which  they  could  never  forget,  and  from 
which  they  had  not  yet  begun  to  recover.  They 
were  thus  compelled  to  remain  comparatively  quiet, 
while  the  ancient  feud  between  them  and  the  north- 
ern tribes  Avould,  under  any  circumstances,  have  pre- 
vented their  uniting  with  the  latter.  The  contagion 
of  the  war  reached  them,  however,  and  they  per- 
petrated  numerous   murders;    while  the  neighboring 

1  MS.  Jclmson  Papers, 


l^t 


':)^\ 


408 


THE  SIEGE  OF  DETROIT  RAISED.     [Chap.  XXIII. 


ration  of  tlie  Creeks  rose  in  open  hostility,  and  coin- 
iiiitted  formidable  ravages.  Towards  the  north,  the 
Indian  tribes  were  compelled,  by  their  position,  to 
remain  tranquil,  yet  they  showed  many  signs  of  un- 
easiaess ;  and  those  of  Nova  Scotia  caused  great  alarm, 
by  mustering  in  large  bodies  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Halifax.  The  excitement  among  them  was  tempo- 
rary, and  they  dispersed  without  attempting  mischief. 


l\ 


^^TTT 


ED.     [Chap.  XXIII. 


^    CHAPTER    XXIV.  ""l! 


THE   PAXTON   MEN. 


m:"'    '!>;/''':, 


■  Along  the  thinly-settled  borders,  two  thousand  per- 
sons had  been  killed,  or  carried  off,  and  nearly  an 
equal  number  of  families  driven  from  their  homes.^ 
The  frontier  people  of  Pennsylvania,  goaded  to  des- 
peration by  long-continued  suffering,  were  divided 
between  rage  against  the  Indians,  and  resentment 
against  the  Quakers,  who  had  yielded  them  cold  sym- 
pathy and  inefficient  aid.  The  horror  and  fear,  grief 
and  fury,  with  which  these  men  looked  upon  the 
mangled  remains  of  friends  and  relatives,  set  language 
at  defiance.  They  were  of  a  rude  and  hardy  stamp, 
hunters,  scouts,  rangers,  Indian  traders,  and  back- 
woods farmers,  who  had  grown  up  with  arms  in  their 
hands,  and  been  trained  under  all  the  influences  of 
the  warlike  frontier.  They  fiercely  complained  that 
they  were  interposed  as  a  barrier  between  the  rest 
of  the  province  and  a  ferocious  enemy,  and  that  they 
were  sacrificed  to  the  safety  of  men  who  looked  with 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
George  Croghe  tC/  the  Board  of 
Trade. 

"  They  can  wkh  great  ease  enter 
our  cnlonies,  and  cut  off  our  frontier 
settlerasnts,  and  thei'^by  lay  waste 
a  large  tract  of  country,  .-^hicu  indeed 
they  have  effected  in  tht  space  of 
four  months,  in  Virginia,  Vlaryland, 
Pennsylvarja,  and   the   Jjrsevs.  on 

52 


whose  frontiers  they  have  killed  and 
captivated  not  less  than  two  thousand 
of  his  majesty's  subjects,  and  drove 
some  thousands  to  begp.a'y  and  thf 
greatest  distress,  besides  burning 
to  the  ground  nine  foils  or  block- 
houses in  the  country,  and  killing  a 
number  of  his  majesty's  ucops  and 
traders." 

IZ 


,fp». 


'     V   i' 


* 


i  ) 


410 


TIIE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


indifference  on  their  miseries,  and  lost  no  opportunity 
to  extenuate  and  smooth  away  the  cruelties  of  their 
destroyers."  They  declared  that  the  Quakers  would 
go  farther  to  befriend  a  murdering  Delaware  than 
to  succor  a  fellow-countryman  —  that  they  loved  red 
blood  better  than  white,  and  a  pagan  better  than  a 
Presbyterian.  The  Pennsylvania  borderers  were,  as 
we  have  seen,  chiefly  the  descendants  of  Presbyterian 
emigrants  from  the  north  of  Ireland.  They  had  in- 
herited  some  portion  of  their  forefathers'  sectarian 
zeal,  which,  while  it  did  nothing  to  soften  the  bar- 
barity of  their  manners,  served  to  inflame  their  ani* 
mosity  against  the  Quakers,  aid  added  bitterness  to 
their  just  complaints.  It  supplied,  mo**eover,  a  con- 
venient sanction  for  the  indulgence  of  their  hatred 
and  vengeance,  for  in  the  general  turmoil  of  their 
passions,  fanaticism  too  was  awakened,  and  they  in- 
terpreted the  command  that  Joshua  should  destroy 
the  heathen^  into  an  injunction  that  they  should  ex- 
terminate the  Indians. 

The  prevailing  excitemait  was  not  confined  to  the 
vulgar.  Even  the  clergy  and  the  chief  magistrates 
shared  it,  and  while  they  lamented  the  excess  of  the 
popular  resentment,  they  maintained  that  the  general 


.is.f^vT-rjd 


Iw 


rf: 


•1  Extract  from  the  Declaration  of 
Lazarus  Stewart 

"  Did  we  not  brave  the  summer's 
heat  and  the  winter's  cold,  and  the 
savage  tomahawk,  while  the  Inhabit- 
ants of  Philadelphia.  Philadelphia 
county,  Bucks,  and  Chester,  'ate, 
drankj  and  were  merry '  ? 

"  If  a  white  man  kill  an  Indian,  it 
is  a  murder  far  exceeding  any  crime 
upon  record ;  he  must  not  be  tried  in 
tlie  county  where  ho  lives,  or  where 
the  offence  was  committed,  but  in 
Philadelphia,  that  he  may  be  tried. 


convicted,  sentenced  and  hung  with- 
out delay.  If  an  Indian  kill  a  white 
man,  it  was  the  act  of  an  ignorant 
Heathen,  perhaps  in  liquor ;  alas,  poor 
innocent!  he  is  sent  to  the  fritndly 
hdUma  that  he  may  be  made  a  Chm- 
turn." 

8  "  And  when  the  Lord  thy  God 
shall  deliver  them  before  thee,  thou 
shalt  smite  them,  and  utterly  destroy 
them ;  thou  shalt  make  no  covenant 
with  them,  nor  show  mercy  unto 
them." — Deuteronomy,  vii.  2. 


<y*r-H  ;"/■!'»     ''5-1  ',': 


chap.xxiv.1   effects  of  bsdian  hostilities. 


411 


3d,  Bctitcnced  and  hung  with- 

f.    If  an  Indian  kill  a  white 

was  the  act  of  an  ignorant 

n,  perhaps  in  liquor ;  alas,  poor 

t!  he  is  sent  to  the  fritndly 

that  he  may  be  made  a  Chrit- 


1  /: 


^ 


complaints  were  founded  in  justice.  Viewing  all  the 
circumstances,  it  is  not  greatly  to  be  wondered  at 
that  some  of  the  more  violent  class  were  inflamed 
to  the  commission  of  atrocities  which  bear  no  very 
favorable  comparison  with  those  of  the  Indians 
themselves. 

It  is  not  easy  for  those  living  in  the  tranquillity 
of  polished  life  fully  to  conceive  the  depth  and  force 
of  that  unquenchable,  indiscriminate  hate  which  In- 
dian outrages  can  awaken  in  those  who  have  suffered 
them.  The  chronicles  of  the  American  borders  are 
iilled  wijth  the  deeds  of  men,  who,  having  lost  all  by 
the  merciless  tomahawk,  have  li^^ed  for  vengeance 
alone ;  and  such  men  will  never  cease  to  exist  so  long 
as  a  hostile  tribe  remains  within  striking  distance  of 
an  American  settlement.*  Never  was  this  hatred  more 
deep  or  more  general  than  on  the  Pennsylvania  fron- 
tier at  this  period;  and  never,  perhaps,  did  so  many 
collateral  causes  unite  to  inflame  it  to  madness.  It 
was  not  lon^'^  in  finding  d  vent. 

Near  the  Susquehanna,  and  at  no  great  distance 
from  the  town  of  Lancaster,  was  a  spot  known  as 
the  Manor  of  Conestoga,  where  a  small  band  of  In- 
dians, chiefly  of  Iroquois  blood,  had  been  seated  since 
the  first  settlement  of  the  province.  William  Penn 
had  visited  and  made  a  treaty  with  them,  which  had 
been  confirmed  by  several  succeeding  governors,  so 
that  the  band  had  always  remained  on  terms  of 
friendship  with  the  English.  Yet,  like  other  Indian 
communities  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  whites,  they 
had  dwindled  in  numbers  and  prosperity,  imtil  they 
were   reduced   to   twenty   persons,   who   inhabited   a 


^  So  promising  a  theme  has  not  es-    has  been  adopted  by  Dr.  Bird  in  his 
pod  the  notice  of  novelists,  and  it    epifiteu  story  of  Nick  of  the  Woods. 


catipil 


412 


-.vn     THE  PAXTON  MEN. 


ICkkt.  XXIV. 


e 


cluster  of  squalid  cabins,  and  lived   by  beggary  and 
the  sale  of  brooms,  baskets,  and  wooden  ladles,  made 
by  the  women.     The  men  spent  a  small  part  of  their 
time  in  himting,  and  lounged  away  the  rest  in  idle- 
ness.    In  the  immediate  neighborhood,  they  were  com- 
monly regarded  as  harmless  vagabonds ;  but  elsewhere, 
a  more  unfavorable  opinion  was  entertained,  and  they 
were   looked   upon   as   secretly   abetting    the   enemy, 
acting  as  spies,  giving  shelter  to  scalping-parties,  and 
even  aiding  them  in  their  depredations.     That  these 
suspicions  were  not  wholly  unfounded  is  shown  by  a 
conclusive  mass   of  evidence,   though  it  is  probable 
that   the   treachery  was   confined  to   one  or  two  iii- 
dividuals.'      The    exasperated   frontiersmen  were  not 
in  a   mood  to  discriminate,   and  tho  innocent  were 
destined  to  share  the  fate  of  the  guilty .** 
5.  On  the  east  bank  of  the   Susquehanna,  some  dis- 
tance above  Conestoga,  stood  the  little  town  of  Pax- 
ton,  a  place  which,  since  the  French  war,  had  occupied 
a  position  of  extreme  exposure.     In  the  year  1755, 
the  Indians  had  burned  it  to  the  ground,  killing  many 
of  the  inhabitants,  Sad  reducing  the  rest  to  poverty, 
It  had  since  been   rebuilt,  but  its   tenants  were  the 
relatives  of  those  who  had  perished,  and  the  bitter- 
ness  of  the  recollection  was  enhanced  by  the  sense 
of  their  own  more  recent  sufferings.     Mention  has  be- 
fore been  made  of  John  Elder,  the  Presbyterian  minister 
of  this  place,  a  man  whose  worth,  good  sense,  and  su- 
jjerior  education  gave  him  the  character  of  counsellor 
and  director  throughout  the  neighborhood,  and  caused 
him  to  be  known  and  esteemed  even  in  Philadelphia. 
His  position  was  a  peculiar  one.     From  the  rough 


1  See  Appendix,  E. 

3  For  an  account  of  the  Uonestoga  Indiaiu,  see  Penn.  Kist  Co!!.  390, 


Cmr.  XXIV.]    MATTHBW  SMITH  AND  HIS  COMPANIONS    413 

pulpit  of  his  little  church,  he  had  often  preached  to 
an  assembly  of  armed  men,  while  scouts  and  senti- 
nels were  stationed  without,  to  give  warning  of  the 
enemy's  approach.^  The  men  of  Faxton,  under  the 
auspices  of  their  pastor,  formed  themselves  into  a 
body  of  rangers,  who  became  noted  for  their  zeal 
and  efficiency  in  defending  the  borders.  One  of  their 
principal  leaders  was  Matthew  Smith,  a  man  who 
had  influence  and  popularity  among  his  associates, 
and  was  not  without  pretensions  to  education,  while 
he  shared  a  full  proportion  of  the  general  hatred 
against  Indians,  and  suspicion  against  the  band  of 
Conestoga.  ^ 

Towards  the  middle  of  December,  a  scout  came 
to  the  house  of  Smith,  and  reported  that  an  Indian, 
known  to  have  committed  depredations  in  the  neigh- 
borhood, had  been  traced  to  Conestoga.  Smith's  res- 
olution was  taken  at  once.  He  called  five  of  his 
companions,  and,  having  armed  and  moimted,  they 
set  out  for  the  Indian  settlement.  They  reached  it 
early  in  the  night,  a:id  Smith,  leaving  his  horse  in 
charge  of  the  others,  crawled  lorward,  rifle  in  hand, 
to  reconnoitre,  when  he  saw,  or  fancied  he  saw,  a 
number  of  armed  warriors  in  the  cabins.  Upon  this 
discovery  he  withdrew,  aid  rejoined  his  associates. 
Believing  themselves  too  weak  for  an  attack,  the 
party  returned  to  Paxton.  Their  blood  was  up,  and 
they  determined  to  extirpate  the  Conestogas.     Mes- 


i: 


1  On  one  occasion,  a  body  of  In- 
dians approached  Paxton  on  Sunday, 
and  sent  forward  one  of  their  num- 
ber, whom  the  English  supposed  to 
be  a  friend,  to  reconnoitre.  The 
spy  reported  that  every  man  in  the 
church,  including  the  preacher,  had 
a  rifle  at  hia  side:  unon  which  the 


enemy  withdrew,  and  satisfied  them- 
selves with  burning  a  few  houses  in 
the  neighborhood.  The  papers  of 
Mr.  Elder  were  submitted  to  the 
writer's  examination  by  his  son,  an 
aged  and  esteemed  citizen  of  Har- 
risburg. 

■:'.'j   .-?<^,wji  >jy  ,    ;■'      .    '  ■ 
II» 


414     iltxiltk-iU'^}     THE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chaf.  XXIV. 


I* 

It 


sengers  went  abroad  through  the  neighborhood;  and, 
on  the  following  day,  about  fifty  armed  and  mounted 
men,  chiefly  from  the  towns  of  Paxton  and  Don- 
ncgal,  assembled  at  the  place  agreed  upon.  Led  by 
Matthew  Smith,  they  took  the  road  to  Conestoga, 
where  they  arrived  a  little  before  daybreak,  on  the 
morning  of  the  fourteenth.  As  they  drew  near,  they 
discerned  the  light  of  a  fire  in  one  of  the  cabins, 
gleaminp'  across  the  snow.  Leaving  their  horses  in 
the  foil  t,  they  separated  into  small  parties,  and  ad. 
vanced  on  several  sides  at  once.  Though  they  moved 
with  some  caution,  the  sound  of  their  footsteps  or 
their  voices  caught  the  ear  of  an  Indian,  and  they 
saw  him  'ssue  from  one  of  the  cabins,  and  walk 
forward  in  the  direction  of  the  noise.  He  came  so 
near  that  one  of  the  men  fancied  that  he  recognized 
him.  "He  is  the  one  that  killed  my  mother,"  he 
exclaimed  with  an  oath ;  and,  firing  his  rifle,  brought 
the  Indian  down.  With  a  general  shout,  the  furious 
ruflians  burst  into  the  cabins,  and  shot,  stabbed,  and 
hacked  to  death  all  whom  they  found  there.  It 
happened  that  only  six  Indians  were  in  the  place, 
the  rest,  in  accordance  with  their  vagrant  habits, 
being  scattered  about  the  neighborhood.  Thus 
balked  of  their  complete  vengeance,  the  murderers 
seized  upon  what  little  booty  they  could  find,  set 
the  cabins  on  fire,  and  departed  at  dawn  of  day.' 


^^^M  &ML 


:l 


'  The  above  account  of  the  mas- 
Hacrc  is  chiefly  drawn  from  the  nar- 
rative of  Matthew  Smitli  himself. 
This  singnlar  paper  was  published 
by  Mr.  Kedmond  Conyn^ham,  of 
l^ncaater,  in  the  Lancaster  Intelli- 
gencer for  1843.  Mr.  Conyngham 
Htates  that  he  procured  it  from  the 
fion  of  Smith,  for  whose  information 


it  had  been  written.  The  account 
is  partially  confirmed  by  incidental 
allusions,  in  a  letter  written  by 
another  of  the  Paxton  men,  and  also 
published  by  Mr.  Conyngham.  This 
gentleman  employed  himself  with 
most  unwearied  diligence  in  collect- 
ing a  voluminous  mass  of  documents, 
comprising,  perhaps,  every  tiling  that 


Chap.XXIV]     massacre  OF  THE  C0NE8T0GAS. 


415 


The  morning  was  cold  and  murky.  Snow  was 
falling,  and  already  lay  deep  upon  the  ground  ;  and, 
as  they  urged  their  horses  through  the  drifts,  they 
were  met  by  one  Thomas  Wright,  who,  struck  by 
their  appearance,  stopped  to  converse  with  them. 
They  freely  told  him  what  they  had  done,  and,  on 
his  expressing  surprise  and  horror,  one  of  them  de- 
manded if  he  believed  in  the  Bible,  and  if  the 
Scripture  did  not  command  that  the  heathen  should 
be  destroyed. 

They  soon  after  separated,  dispersing  among  the 
farm-houses,  to  procure  food  for  themselves  and  their 
horses.  Several  rode  to  the  house  of  E-obert  Barber, 
a  prominent  settler  in  the  neigl' "jorhoor'  who,  seeing 
the  strangers  stamping  their  feet  an^^  shaking  the 
snow  from  their  blanket  coats,  invited  them  to  enter, 
and  offered  them  refreshment,  .^^aving  remais  ed  for 
a  short  time  seated  before  h-s  hre,  they  remounted 
and  rode  off  through  the  snow-storm.  A  boy  of  the 
family,  who  had  gone  to  look  at  the  horses  of  the 
visitors,  came  in  and  declared  that  he  had  seen  a 
tomahawk,  covered  with  blootl,  hanging  from  each 
man's  saddle,  and  that  a  small  gun,  belonging  to  one 
of  the  Indian  children,  had  been  leaning  against  the 
fence.*  Barber  at  once  guessed  the  truth,  and,  with 
several  of  his  neighbors,  proceeded  to  the  Indian 
settlement,  where  'jiry  found  the  solid  log  cabins 
still  on  fire.  They  buried  the  remains  of  the  vic- 
tims, which  Barber  compared  in  appearance  to  half- 
buiTit  logs.  "While  they  were  thus  engaged,  the 
sheriff  of   Lancaster,  with   a  party  of  men,   arrived 


* 


could  contribute  to  extenuate  the  to  time  in  the  above-mentioned  news- 
conduct  of  the  Paxton  men ;  and  to  paper,  reference  will  often  be  made, 
these  papers,  as  published  from  time        *  Haz.  Pa.  Reg.  IX.  114. 


416 


THE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


M 


4: 

I* 

II. 


on  the  spot;  and  the  first  care  of  the  officer  was  to 
send  through  the  neighborhood  to  collect  the  In- 
dians, fourteen  in  number,  who  had  escaped  the 
massacre.  This  was  soon  accomplished,  and  the  un- 
happy survivors,  learning  the  fate  of  their  friends 
and  relatives,  were  in  great  terror  for  their  own 
lives,  and  earnestly  begged  protection.  They  were 
conducted  to  Lancaster,  where,  amid  great  excite- 
ment, they  were  lodged  in  the  county  jail,  a  strong 
stone  building,  which  it  was  thought  would  afford 
the  surest  refuge. 

An  express  was  despatched  to  Philadelphia  with 
news  of  the  massacre,  on  hearing  wh'oh,  the  gov- 
ernor issued  a  proclamation,  denouncing  the  act,  and 
offering  a  reward  for  the  discovery  of  the  perpetra- 
tors. Undaunted  by  this  measure,  and  enraged  that 
any  of  their  victims  should  have  escaped,  the  Pax- 
ton  men  determined  to  continue  the  work  they  had 
begun.  In  this  resolution  they  were  confirmed  by 
the  prevailing  impression,  that  an  Indian  known  to 
have  murdered  the  relatives  of  one  of  their  number 
was  among  those  who  had  received  the  protection  of 
the  magistrates  at  Lancaster.  They  sent  forward  a 
spy  to  gain  intelligence,  and,  on  his  return,  once 
more  met  at  their  rendezvous.  On  this  occasion, 
their  nominal  leader  was  Lazarus  Stewart,  who  was 
esteemed  upon  the  borders  as  a  brave  and  active 
young  man,  and  who,  there  is  strong  reason  to  b^ 
lieve,  entertained  no  worse  design  than  that  of  seiz- 
ing the  obnoxious  Indian,  carrying  him  to  Carlisle, 
and  there  putting  him  to  death,  in  case  he  should 
be  identified  as  the  murderer.*     Most  of  his  followers. 


raiaaiimffitaLta' 


Papers  published  by  Mr.  Conyngham  in  Uie  Lancaster  Intelligencer. 


ncaster  Intelligencer. 


Chap.XXIV.1        attack  ON  LANCASTER  JAIL. 


417 


however,  hardened  amidst  war  and  bloodshed,  were 
bent  on  indiscriminate  slaughter;  a  purpose  which 
they  concealed  from  their  more  moderate  associates. 

Early  on  the  twenty-seventh  of  December,  the 
party,  about  fifty  in  number,  left  Paxton  on  their 
desperate  errand.  Elder  had  used  all  his  influence  to 
divert  them  from  their  design;  and  now,  seeing  them 
depart,  he  mounted  his  horse,  overtook  them,  and 
addressed  them  with  the  most  earnest  remonstrance. 
Finding  his  Avords  unheeded,  he  drew  up  his  horse 
across  the  narrow  road  in  front,  and  charged  them, 
on  his  authority  as  their  pastor,  to  return.  Upon 
this,  Matthew  Smith  rode  forward,  and,  pointing  his 
rifle  at  the  breast  of  Elder's  horse,  threatened  to  fire 
unless  he  drew  him  aside,  and  gave  room  to  pass. 
The  clergyman  was  forced  to  comply,  and  the  party 
proceeded.' 

At  about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  the  riot- 
ers, aiTned  with  rifle,  knife,  and  tomahawk,  rode  at 
a  gallop  into  Lancaster,  turned  their  horses  into  the 
yard  of  the  public  house,  ran  to  the  jail,  burst  open 
the  door,  and  rushed  tumultuously  in.  The  fourteen 
Indians  were  in  a  small  yard  adjacent  to  the  build- 
ing, surrounded  by  high  stone  walls.  Hearing  the 
shouts  of  the  mob,  and  startled  by  the  apparition 
of  armed  men  in  the  doorway,  two  or  three  of  them 
snatched  up  billets  of  wood  in  self-defence.  What- 
ever may  have  been  the  purpose  of  the  Paxton  men, 
this  show  of  resistance  banished  every  thought  of 
forbearance;  and  the  foremost,  rushing  forward,  fired 
their  rifles  among  the  crowd  of  Indians.  In  a  mo- 
ment more,  the  yard  was  filled  with  rufiians,  shout- 

^  This  anecdote  was  told  to  tlie  writer  by  the  son  of  Mr.  Elder,  and  is 
also  related  by  Mr.  Conyngham. 

53 


■',•  'I 


."^i: . ! 


'■i-'i 


0 

] 

!  u ' 

1 

■  u 

$ 

:  ,  -■ 

!i'> 
>','.< 

1 '-.: 

4 

"'S' 

4 

w 


c 


418 


THE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


ing,  cursing,  and  firing  upon  the  cowering  wretches, 
holding  the  muzzles  of  their  pieces,  in  some  in- 
stances,  so  near  their  victims'  heads  that  the  brains 
were  scattered  by  the  explosion.  The  work  was  soon 
finished.  The  bodies  of  men,  women,  and  children, 
mangled  with  outrageous  brutality,  lay  scattered  aboit 
the  yard,  and  the  murderers  were  gone.* 

When  the  first  alarm  was  given,  the  magistrates 
were  in  the  church,  attending  the  Christmas  service, 
which  had  been  postponed  on  the  twenty-fifth.  The 
door  was  flung  open,  and  the  voice  of  a  man  half 
breathless  was  heard  in  broken  exclamations,  "  Mur- 
der  —  the  jail  —  the  Paxton  Boys  —  the  Indians." 
;  The  assembly  broke  up  in  disorder,  and  Ship- 
pen,  the  principal  magistrate,  hastened  towards  the 
scene  of  riot;  but,  before  he  could  reach  it,  all  was 
finished,  and  the  murderers  were  galloping  in  a  body 
from   the   town.^     The   sheriff  and   the    coroner   had 


1  Deposition  of  Felix  DonoUy, 
keeper  of  Lancaster  jail.  Declora* 
tion  of  LazuMit-:  Stewart,  published 
by  Mr.  Conyn(j)Ht;ii.  Rupp,  Hist  of 
York  and  LaneoBter  Counties,  358. 
Heckewelder,  Nar.  of  Moravian  Mis- 
sions, 79.    See  Appendix,  E. 

Soon  afler  the  massacre,  Franklin 
published  an  account  of  it  at  Phila- 
delphia, which,  being  intended  to 
strengthen  the  hands  of  government 
by  exciting  a  popular  sentiment 
against  the  rioters,  is  more  rhetor- 
ical than  accurate.  The  following 
is  his  account  of  the  consummation 
of  the  act :  — 

"  When  the  poor  wretches  saw 
they  had  no  protection  nigh,  nor 
could  possibly  escape,  they  divided 
into  their  little  families,  the  children 
clinging  to  the  parents ;  they  fell  on 
their  knees,  protested  then:  inno- 
cence, declared  their  love  to  the 
English,  and   that,  in  their  whole 


lives,  they  had  never  done  them  in. 
jury ;  and  in  this  posture  they  all  re- 
ceived the  hatchet ! " 

This  is  a  pure  embellishment  of 
the  fancy.  The  only  persons  pres- 
ent were  the  jailer  and  the  rioters 
themselves,  who  unite  in  testifying 
that  the  Indians  died  with  the  un- 
flinching stoicism  which  their  race 
usually  exhibit  under  such  circum- 
stances ;  and  indeed,  so  sudden  iras 
the  act,  that  there  was  no  time  for 
enacting  the  scene  described  by 
Franklin. 

3  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Edward  Sliippen  to  Governor  Penn. 

"  Lancaster,  27th  Dec,  1763,  P.  M. 

"  Honoured  Sir :  — 

"I  am  to  acquaint  your  Honout 
that  between  two  and  three  of  the 
Clock  this  afternoon,  upwards  of  a 
hundred  armed  men  from  the  West 
ward   rodo   very    fast   into   Town. 


i\ 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


27th  Dec,  1763,  P.  M. 


Chaf.  XXIV.l         MASSACBE  IN  LANCASTER  JAIL. 


419 


mingled  among  the  rioters,  aiding  and  abetting  them, 
as  their  enemies  affirm,  but,  according  to  their  own 
statement,  vainly  risking  their  lives  to  restore  order.^ 
A  company  of  Highland  soldiers,  on  their  way  from 
Fort  Pitt  to  Philadelphia,  were  encamped  near  the 
town.  Their  commander,  Captain  Robertson,  after- 
wards declared  that  he  put  himself  in  the  way  of 
the  magistrates,  expecting  that  they  would  call  upon 
him  to  aid  the  civU  authority;  while,  on  the  con- 
trary, several  of  the  inhabitants  testify,  that,  when 
they  urged  him  to  interfere,  he  replied,  with  an  oath, 
that  his  men  had  suffered  enough  £rom  Indians 
already,  and  should  not  stir  hand  or  foot  to  save 
them.  Be  this  as  it  may,  it  seems  certain  that 
neither  soldiers  nor  magistrates,  with  their  best  exer- 
tions, could  have  availed  to  prevent  the  massacre;, 
for  so  well  was  the  plan  concerted,  that,  within  ten 
or  twelve  minutes  after  the  alarm,  the  Indians  were 
dead,  and  the  murderers  mounted  to  depart. 

The  people  crowded  into  the  jail  yard  to  gaz6 
upon  the  miserable  spectacle ;  and,  when  their  curios- 
ity was  sated,  the  bodies  were  gathered  tc^ether,  and 
buried  not  far  from  the  town,  where  they  reposed 
three  quarters  of  a  century,  until,  at  length,  the  bones 


turned  their  Hones  into  Mr.  Slough's 
(an  Innkeeper's)  yard,  and  proceeded 
wi'jn  the  groatest  precipitation  to  the 
Work-House,  stove  open  the  door 
ani!  killed  all  the  Indians,  and  then 
took  to  Uieir  Horses  and  rode  off:  all 
their  basinees  was  done,  &  they 
were  returning  to  their  Horses  be- 
fore I  could  get  half  way  down  to 
the  Work-House.  The  Sheriff  and 
Coroner  however,  and  several  others, 
got  down  as  soon  as  the  rioters,  but 
could  not  prevail  with  them  to  stop 
tlieir  hands.  Some  people  say  tliey 
heard  them  declare  Uiey  would  pro- 


ceed to  the  Province  Isln-nd,  ^  dC' 
stroy  the  Indians  there." 

1  Extract  from  a  MS.  T^uttar  — 
John  Hay,  the  sheriff,  to  Governor 
Penn. 

"They  in  a  body  left  the  town 
without  offering  any  insults  to  the 
Inhabitants,  &  without  putting  it  in 
the  power  of  any  one  to  take  or  mo- 
lest any  of  them  without  danger  of 
life  to  the  person  attempting  it ;  of 
which  both  myself  and  the  Coroner, 
by  our  opposition,  were  in  great 
danger." 


f 


if  If 


7/ 


'!!:« 


420 


VHE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


were  disinterred  in  preparing  the  foundation  for  a 
railroad. 

The  tidings  of  this  massacre  threw  the  country 
into  a  ferment.  Various  opinions  were  expressed ;  but, 
in  the  border  counties,  even  the  most  sober  and 
moderate  regarded  it,  not  as  a  wilful  and  deliberate 
crime,  but  as  the  mistaken  act  of  rash  men,  fevered 
to  desperation  by  wrongs  and  sufferings.^ 

When  the  news  reached  Philadelphia.,  a  clamorous 
outcry  rose  from  the  Quakers,  who  could  find  no  words 
to  express  their  horror  and  detestation.  They  assailed, 
not  the  rioters  only,  but  the  whole  PresbyteriaL  sect, 
with  a  tempest  of  abuse,  none  the  less  virulent  for 
being  vented  in  the  name  of  philanthropy  and  religion. 
TTie  governor  again  issued  a  proclamation,  offering 
rewards  for  the  detection  and  arrest  of  the  murderers; 
but  the  latter,  far  from  shrinking  into  concealment, 
proclaimed  their  deed  in  the  face  of  day,  boasted  the 
achievement,  and  defended  it  by  reason  and  Scripture. 
So  great  was  the  excitement  in  the  frontier  counties, 
and  so  deep  the  sympathy  with  the  rioters,  that  to 
arrest  them  would  have  required  the  employment  of 
a  strong  military  force,  an  experiment  far  too  dan- 


k     1  Extract  from  a  Letter — Rev.Mr. 
Elder  to  Colonel  Burd. 

"Paxton,  1764. 

"Lazams  Stewart  is  still  threat- 
ened by  the  Philadelphis  party;  ha 
and  his  friends  talk  of  leaving  —  if 
^ey  do,  the  province  will  lose  some 
of  their  truest  friends,  and  that  by 
the  fanlts  of  others,  not  their  own ;  for 
if  any  cruelty  was  practised  on  the  In- 
dians at  Conestogue  or  at  Lancaster,  it 
was  not  by  his,  or  their  hands.  There 
is  a  great  reason  to  believe  that  much 
injurtice  has  been  done  to  all  con> 
cemed:    In  the  contrariness  of  ac- 


counts, we  must  infer  that  much  rests 
for  support  on  the  imagination,  or  in- 
terest of  the  witness.  The  characters 
of  Stewart  and  his  friends  wen;  '>?ell 
established.  Ruffians  nor  brutal  they 
were  not ;  humane,  liberal  and  moral, 
nay,  religious.  It  is  evidently  not  the 
wish  of  the  party  to  give  Stewart  a  fair 
hearing.  All  he  desires,  is  to  be  put 
on  trial,  at  Lancaster,  near  the  scenes 
of  the  horrible  butcheries,  committeo 
by  the  Indians  at  Tulpehocken,  &c , 
when  he  can  have  the  testimony  of 
the  Scouts  or  R(»''^,c«b,  men  whose 
services  can  never  be  sufficiently  re- 
warded." 


r/ 


Chap.  XXIV.] 


LAZARUS  STEWART. 


421 


gerous  to  be  tried.  Nothing  of  the  kind  was  attempt- 
ed until  nearly  eight  years  afterwards,  when  Lazarus 
Stewart  was  apprehended  on  the  charge  of  murdering 
the  Indians  of  Conestoga.  Learning  that  his  trial 
was  to  take  place,  not  in  the  county  where  the  act 
was  committed,  but  in  Philadelphia,  and  thence  judg- 
ing that  his  condemnation  was  certain,  he  broke  jail 
and  escaped.  Having  written  a  declaration  to  justify 
his  conduct,  he  called  his  old  associates  around  him, 
set  the  provincial  government  of  Pennsylvania  at  de- 
fiance, and  withdrew  to  Wyoming  with  his  band. 
Here  he  joined  the  settlers  recently  arrived  from 
Connecticut,  and  thenceforth  played  a  conspicuous 
part  in  the  eventful  history  of  that  remarkable 
spot.^ 

After  the  massacre  at  Conestoga,  the  excitement 
in  the  frontier  counties,  far  from  subsiding,  increased 
in  violence  daily,  and  various  circumstances  conspired 
to  inflame  it.  The  principal  of  these  was  the  course 
pursued  by  the  provincial  government  towards  the 
Christian  Indians  attached  to  the  Moravian  missions. 
Many  years  had  elapsed  since  the  Moravians  began 
the  task  of  converting  the  Indians  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  their  steadfast  energy  and  regulated  zeal  had 
been  crowned  with  success.  They  had  increased  in 
both  temporal  and  spirituti"!    prosperity,   and   several 


Bver  be  sufficiently  re- 


1  Fipers  published  by  Mr.  Conyng- 
har>. 

Extract  f  i-n  the  Declaration  of 
Lazarus  Stewart 

"What  I  have  done,  was  doi  lor 
the  security  of  hundreds  of  settlers 
on  the  frontiers.  The  blood  of  a 
tliousand  of  my  fellow-creatures  called 
for  vengeance.  As  a  Ranger,  I  sought 
tlie  post  of  danger,  and  now  you  ask 


my  life.     Let  me  be  tried  where 

Erejudice  has  not  prejudged  my  case, 
let  my  brave  Rangers,  who  have 
stemmed  the  blast  nobly,  and  never 
flinched ;  let  ther  ';  .e  an  equitable 
trial;  they  were  .  iriends  in  tbo 
hour  of  danger — to  iesert  them  iiow 
were  cowardice!  What  ror  ains  is 
to  leave  our  cause  with  our  '  1,  and 
our  guns." 

JJ 


':^mi 


422 


TIIE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


thriving  settlements  of  their  converts  had  sprung  up 
in  the  valley  of  thp  Lnhii^h,  when  the  opening  of  the 
French  war,  in  1'1'j5,  iuvolved   them  in  unlooked-for 
calamities.      'J  lieso    'jnhappy    neutrals,    between    the 
French  and  Intliaiifc;  on  the  0)0    ide,  and  the  English 
on  the    '.her,  t  xciteu  tho  enr/ivf .   of  hoth,  and  while 
frcmi  the  ^^^est  r.iiy  were  threatened  by  the  hatchets 
of  their  own  countrymen,  they  wore  menaced  on  the 
east  by  the  no  less  formidable  vengeance  of  the  white 
settlers,  ^vho,  in  their  distre sfi  and  terror,  never  doubt- 
ed  that  fhe   Moriwiuii     onvert-s  were  in  league  with 
the  enemy.     The  p(  pular  rage  against  them  at  length 
grew  so  furious,  that  their  destruction  was  resolved 
upon.     The  settlers   assembled  and  advanced  against 
the  Moravian  community  of  Gnadenhutten ;  but  the 
French  and    Indians  gained  the  first  blow,  and,  de- 
scending upovi  the  doomed  settlement,  utterly  destroyed 
it.     This  disaster,  deplorable  as  it  was  in  itself,  proved 
the    safety   of   the    other    Moravian    settlements,  by 
making  it  fully  apparent  that  their  inhabitants  were 
not  in  league  with  the  enemy.     They  were  suffered 
to  remain  unmolested  for  several  years ;  but  wit'    lue 
murders  that  ushered  in   Pontiac's  war,  in  1763,  the 
former  suspicion  revived,  and   the   expediency  of  de- 
stroying  the  Mora^dan   Indians  was  openly  deb.ated. 
Towanls   the    end    of  the    summer,  several    outrages 
were  committed  upon   the   settlers   in  the  neighbor- 
hood, and  the  Moravian  Indians  were  loudly  accused 
of  taking  part  in   them.     These  charges  were  never 
fully  confuted ;  and,  taking  into  view  the  harsh  treat- 
ment which  ii'C  converts  had  always  experiei'   1  irom 
the  whites,        ;   highly  probable  luat  ?    'ic  of  them 
were  dispc   "      o  sympathize  with  their  heathen  coun- 
trymei"     .       are  known  to  have   courted  their  alii- 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


Chap.  XXIV.]  THE  MORAVIAN  CONVERTS.  i/         423 


<    V 


ance.  The  Moravians  had,  however,  excited  in  their 
converts  a  high  d  jgree  of  religious  enthusiasm,  which, 
directed  as  it  was  by  the  teachings  of  the  missiona- 
ries, went  fo^rcher  than  any  thing  else  could  have 
done  to  soften  their  national  prejudices,  and  wean 
them  from  their  warlike  habits.  -m    sfe         »v 

About  three  months  before  the  massacre  at  Cones- 
toga,  a  party  of  drunken  rangers,  fired  by  the  general 
resentment  against  the  Moravian  Indians,  murdered 
several  of  them,  both  men  and  women,  whom  they 
found  sleeping  in  a  bam.  Not  long  after,  the  same 
party  of  rangers  were,  in  their  turn,  surprised  and 
killed,  some  peaceful  settlers  of  the  neighborhood 
sharing  their  fate.  This  act  was  at  once  ascribed, 
justly  or  unjustly,  to  the  vengeance  of  the  converted 
Indians,  relatives  of  the  murdered;  and  the  frontier 
people,  who,  like  the  Paxton  men,  were  chiefly  Scotch 
and  Irish  Presbyterians,  resolved  that  the  objects  of 
their  suspicion  should  live  no  longer.  At  this  time, 
the  Moravian  converts  consisted  of  two  communities, 
those  of  Nain  and  Wecquetank,  near  the  Lehigh,  and 
to  these  may  be  added  a  third,  at  Wyalusing,  near 
Wyoming.  The  latter,  from  its  distant  situation,  was, 
for  the  present,  safe ;  but  the  two  former  were  in  im- 
minent peril,  and  the  inhabitants,  in  mortal  terror  for 
their  lives,  stood  day  and  night  on  the  watch. 

At  length,  about  the  tenth  of  October,  a  gang  of 
armed  men  approached  Wecquetank,  and  encamped  in 
the  woods,  at  no  great  distance.  They  intended  to 
make  their  attack  under  favor  of  the  darkness;  but, 
before  evening,  a  storm,  which  to  the  missionaries 
seemed  providential,  descended  with  such  violence, 
that  the  /ires  of  the  hostile  camp  were  extinguished 


':%'*v 


M 


424 


THE  PAXTON  MEN. 


[Chap.  XXIV. 


if 


in  a  moment,  the  ammunition  of  the  men  wet,  and 
the  plan  defeated.* 

After  so  narrow  an  escape,  it  was  apparent  that 
flight  was  the  only  resource.  The  terrified  congrega- 
tion of  Wecquetank  broke  up  on  the  following  day, 
and,  under  the  charge  of  their  missionary,  Bernard 
Grube,  removed  to  the  Moravian  town  of  Nazareth, 
where  it  was  hoped  they  might  remain  in  safety.** 

In  the  mean  time,  the  charges  against  the  Moravian 
converts  had  been  laid  before  the  provincial  Assembly, 
and,  to  securo  the  safety  of  the  frontier  people,  it  was 
judged  expedient  to  disarm  the  suspected  Indians, 
and  remove  them  to  a  part  of  the  province  where  it 
would  be  beyond  their  power  to  do  mischief^  The 
motion  was  passed  in  the  Assembly  with  little  dissent, 
the  Quakers  supporting  it  from  regard  to  the  safety 
of  the  Indians,  and  their  opponents  from  regard  to 
the  safety  of  the  whites.  The  order  for  removal 
reached  its  destination  o..  the  sixth  of  November, 
and  the  Indians,  reluctantly  yielding  up  their  arms, 
prepared  for  departure.  When  a  sermon  had  been 
preached  before  the  united  congregations,  and  a  hymn 
sung,  in  which  all  took  part,  the  unfortunate  exiles 
set  out  on  their  forlorn  pilgrimage;  the  aged,  the 
young,  the  sick,  and  the  blind,  borne  in  wagons,  while 
the  rest  journeyed  on  foot.*  Their  total  number,  in- 
cluding the  band  from  Wyalusing,  which  joined 
them  aft'  r  they  reached  Philadelphia,  was  about  a 
hundred    and   forty.      At   every    village   and   hamlet 

1  Loskiel,    Hist.    Moravian  Mis-        3  Votes  of  Assembly,  V.  284. 
sions,  Part  II.  211.  *  Loskiel,    Hist    Moravian   Mis- 

'■^  MS.  Letter  —  Bernard  Grube  to  sions,   Part  II.  214.    Heckrwelder, 

Governor  Hamilton,  Oct,  lii.  Narrative  of  Miasioiis,  7" 


Chap.  XXIV.]  THE  MORAVIAN  CONVERTS. 


425 


which  they  passed  on  their  way,  they  were  greeted 
with  threats  and  curses;  nor  did  the  temper  of  the 
people  improve  as  they  advanced,  for,  when  they  came 
to  Germantown,  the  mob  could  scarcely  be  restrained 
from  attacking  them.  On  reaching  Philadelphia,  they 
were  conducted,  amidst  the  yells  and  hoot'ngs  of  the 
rabble,  to  the  barracks,  which  had  been  intended  to 
receive  them;  but  the  soldiers,  who  outdid  the  mob 
in  their  hatred  of  Indians,  refused  to  admit  them,  and 
set  the  ordors  of  the  governor  at  defiance.  From  ten 
o'clock  in  the  morning  until  three  in  the  afternoon, 
the  persecuted  exiles  remained  drawn  up  in  the  square, 
before  the  barracks,  surrounded  by  a  multitude  who 
never  ceased  to  abuse  and  threaten  them;  but  wher- 
ever the  broad  hat  of  a  Quaker  was  seen  in  the 
crowd,  there  they  felt  the  assurance  of  a  friend  — 
a  friend,  who,  both  out  of  love  for  them,  and  aver- 
sion to  their  enemies,  would  spare  no  efforts  in  their 
behalf  The  soldiers  continued  iofractory,  and  the 
Indians  were  at  length  ordered  to  pr'-  r*.  As  they 
moved  down  the  street,  shrinking  tOj^ii.jier  in  their 
terror,  the  mob  about  them  grew  so  angry  and  clam- 
orous, that  to  their  missionaries  they  seemed  like 
a  flock  of  sheep  in  ^he  midst  of  howling  wolves.*  A 
body-guard  of  Quakers  gathered  around,  protecting 
them  from  the  crowd,  and  speaking  words  of  sym- 
pathy and  encouragement.  Thus  they  proceeded  to 
Province    Island,   below   the    ci'  'lere   they  were 

lodged  in  waste  buildings,  prepared  in  haste  for  their 
reception,  and  where  the  Quakers  still  attended  them, 
with  every  oflice  of  kindness  and  friendship 


m   ■ 


i      I 


4        ■> 


f 


1** 


% 


;  titM 


54 


1  Loskiel,  Part  II.  216. 


JJ 


'    a 


iii;-'.  'k. 


■■^^m 


s  .!M'> 


■■■';  y 


CHAPTER    XXV; 


THE   RIOTERS   MARCH   ON    PHILADELPHIA. 


The  Conestoga  murders  did  not  take  place  until 
some  weeks  after  the  removal  of  the  Moravian  con- 
verts to  Philadelphia,  and  the  rioters,  as  they  rode, 
flushed  with  success,  out  of  L;  ucaster,  after  the 
achievement  of  their  exploit,  were  heard  to  boast 
that  they  would  soon  visit  the  city  and  finish  their 
work,  by  killing  he  Indians  ^  .lom  it  had  taken  un- 
der its  protection.  It  wa^  sooi  but  too  ;i^)parent 
that  this  design  was  seriously  em.  ained  I))  the  peo- 
ple of  the  frontier.  They  had  taster'  blood,  and  they 
craved  more.  It  seemed  to  them  li.tolorablc,  tliat 
whUe  their  sufForingh  were  unheeded,  and  tl  'r  wound- 
ed and  destitute  friends  uncared  for,  tliey  iiouJd  be 
taxed  to  support  those  whom  they  regarded  as  autliors 
of  thtir  calamities,  or,  in  their  own  angry  words,  "to 
maintain  them  through  the  winter,  that  they  maj 
scalp  and  butcher  us  in  the  spring."*  In  their  blind 
rage,  they  vvould  not  see  that  the  Moravian  Indians 


1  Reirmnstrancc  of  th  Frontier 
People  to  the  Governor  and  Assem- 
bly.   See  Votes  of  Assembly,  V.  313. 

The  "  Declaration,"  whicli  accom- 
panied the  "  Remonstrance,"  contains 
the  following  passage :  "  To  protect 
and  maintain  tliesc  Indiana  at  the 
public  expense,  while  our  suiforing 


brethren  on  the  frontiers  are  almost 
destitute  of  the  necessaries  of  lite, 
and  are  neglected  by  the  public,  is 
sufficient  to  make  us  mad  wiUi  rajre, 
and  tempt  us  to  do  what  notliing  but 
the  most  violent  necessity  can  vin- 
dicate." 

Sec  Appendix,  E. 


lDELPHIA. 


Chap.  XXV,      EXCITEMENT  OF  TIIE  BORDERERS,    'it         427 

had  been  removed  to  Philadelphia,  in  part,  at  least, 
with  a  view  to  the  safety  of  the  borders.  To  their 
enmity  against  Indians  was  added  a  resentment, 
scarcely  less  vehement,  against  the  Quakers,  whose 
sectarian  principles  they  hated  and  despised.  They 
complained,  too,  of  political  grievances,  ;  lleging  that 
the  five  frontier  counties  were  inadequately  repre- 
sented in  the  Assembly,  and  that  from  thence  arose 
the  undue  influence  of  the  Quakers  in  the  councils 
of  the  province.  >"> 

The  excited  people  soon  began  to  assemble  at  tav- 
ern.'; and  other  places  of  resort,  recounting  their 
grie\ances,  real  or  imaginary,  relating  frightful  stories 
of  Indian  atrocities,  and  launching  fierce  invectives 
against  the  Quakers.*  Political  agitators  harangued 
them  on  their  violated  rights,  self-constituted  preachers 
urged  the  duty  of  destroying  the  heathen,  forgetting 
that  the  Moravian  Indians  were  Christians,  and  their 
exasperated  hearers  were  soon  ripe  for  any  rash 
attempt.  They  resolved  to  assemble  and  march  in 
arms  to  Philadelphia.  On  a  former  occasion,  they 
had  sent  thither  a  wagon  laden  with  the  mangled 
corpses  of  their  friends  and  relatives,  who  had  fallen 
by  Indian  butchery;  but  the  hideous  spectacle  had 
failed  of  the  intended  effect,  and  the  Assembly  had 
still  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  their  entreaties  for  more 
effective  aid.''    Appeals  to  sviniiathy  had  been  thrown 


1  MS.  Elder  Papers. 

The  following  verses  are  extracted 
from  a  poem,  published  at  Philadel- 
phia by  a  partisan  of  the  Paxton  men, 
entitled 

"  Tht  Cloven  Foot  discovered. 
"  Goon,  Rood  Chrlstianii,  novor  spnre 
To  give  your  Indiana  Clothes  to  wrar  ; 
t-end  'cm  |!0od  Boer,  and  I'ork,  nnil  Dread, 
(iiiiis,  I'owdcr,  Flints,  nnd  Store  of  Lead, 
"■   '•■  ■    •     —  ~j . 


Devoutly  tlicn,  make  Afllrmation, 

You're  Friends  to  George  and  British  Nation  ; 

Encourage  ev'ry  friendly  Savage, 

To  intirder,  burn,  destroy,  and  ravngo  ; 

Fathers  and  Mothers  here  maintain, 

Whoso  Pons  add  Numbers  to  the  slain, 

or  Bcutcli  iind  Irish  let  them  kill 

As  many  Thousands  as  they  will, 

That  you  may  lord  it  o'er  the  Land, 

And  have  the  whole  and  sole  command.*' 

2  This  incident   occurred  during 
the  French  war.  and  is  thus  described 


;'  "  if 


^¥\  i 


jf« 


■I'.'  : 


428    Tire  RioTEft,:?  :,L\ncn  on  rntLADELPHiA.  [Cmap.xxv. 


m 


••• 


1 


Hi 


away,   and   they  now  resolved  to  try  the  efficacy  of 
their  rifles. 

They  mustered  under  their  popular  leaders,  promi- 
nent  among  whom  was  Matthew  Smith,  who  had  led 
the  murderers  at  Concstoga,  and,  towards  the  end  of 
January,  took  the  road  to  Philadelphia,  in  force  va- 
riously estimated  at  from  five  hundred  to  fifteen 
hundred  men.  Their  avowed  purpose  was  to  kill  the 
Moravian  Indians;  but  what  vague  designs  they  may 
have  entertained  to  change  the  government,  and  eject 
the  Quakers  from  a  share  in  it,  must  remain  a  mat- 
ter of  uncertaint}'.     Feeble  as  they  were  in  numbers, 

j  I  their  enterprise  was  not  so  hopeless  as  might  at  first 
appear,  for  they  counted  on  aid  from  the  mob  of  the 
city,  while  a  numerous  party,  comprising  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Presbyterian  sect,  were  expected  to  give 
them  secret  support,  or,  at  least,  to  stand  neutral  in 
the  quarrel.  The  Quakers,  who  were  their  most  de- 
termined enemies,  could  not  take  arms  against  them 
without  glaring  violation  of  the  principles  which  they 
had  so  often  and  loudly  professed;  and  even  should 
they  thus  fly  in  the  face  of  conscience,  the  warlike 
borderers  would  stand  in  little  fear  of  such  unprac- 
tised warriors.  They  pursued  their  march  in  high 
confidence,  applauded  by  the  inhabitants,  and  hourly 
increasing  in  numbers.  .i. 

'  Startling  rumors  of  tho  danger  soon  reached  Phil- 

adelphia, spreading   alarm   among  the  citizens.    The 


by  a  Quaker  evo-witness :  "  Some 
of  the  dead  bodies  were  brought  to 
Philadelphia  in  a  wagon,  in  the  time 
<if  the  General  Meeting  of  Friends 
tlure  in  December,  with  intent  to 
animate  the  people  to  unite  in  prep- 
nrntions  for  war  on  the  Indians.  They 
were  carried  along  the  streets —  many 


people  following  —  cursing  tho  In- 
dians, and  also  the  Quakers,  because 
they  would  not  join  in  war  for  their 
destruction.  The  sight  of  the  dead 
bodies,  and  tlie  outcry  of  the  people, 
were  very  afflicting  and  ehockinfj." 
—  Watson,  jinnala  of  Phil.  441), 
(Phil.  1830.) 


CnAr.XXV.l  ALARM  OP  THE  QUAKERS.  f'jy      429 

Quakers,  especially,  had  reason  to  fear,  both  for 
themselves  and  for  the  Indians,  of  whom  it  was  their 
pride  to  be  esteemed  the  champions.  Those  pacific 
sectaries  found  themselves  in  a  new  and  embarrassing 
position,  for  hitherto  they  had  been  able  to  assert 
their  principles  at  no  great  risk  to  person  or  prop- 
erty. The  appalling  tempest,  which,  during  the 
French  war,  had  desolated  the  rest  of  the  province, 
had  been  unfelt  near  Philadelphia ;  and  while  the  in- 
habitants to  the  westward  had  been  slaughtered  by 
hundreds,  scarcely  a  Quaker  had  been  hurt.  Under 
tliese  circumstances,  the  aversion  of  the  sect  to  war- 
like measures  had  been  a  fruitful  source  of  difficulty. 
It  is  true  that,  on  several  occasions,  they  had  voted 
supplies  for  the  public  defence ;  but  unwilling  to 
place  on  record  such  a  testimony  of  inconsistency, 
they  had  granted  the  money,  not  for  the  avowed 
purpose  of  raising  and  arming  soldiers,  but  under  the 
title  of  a  gift  to  the  crown.^  They  were  now  to  be 
deprived  of  even  this  poor  subterfuge,  and  subjected 
to  the  dilemma  of  suftering  their  friends  to  be  slain 
and  themselves  to  be  plundered,  or  openly  appealing 
to  arms. 

Their  embarrassment  was  increased  by  the  exagger- 
ated ideas  which  prevailed  among  the  ignorant  and 
timorous  respecting  the  size  and  strength  of  the  bor- 
derers, their  ferocity  of  temper,  and  their  wonderful 
skill  as  marksmen.  Quiet  citizens,  whose  knowledge 
was  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  their  firesides 
and  shops,  listened  horror-stricken  to  these  reports, 
the  prevalence  of  which  is  somewhat  surprising,  when 
it  is  considered  that,  at  the  present  day,  the  district 


4| 


1  See  Gordon,  Hist.  Penn.  Chaps.  XII.-XVIII. 


1  t 


, -S-        1 


430     THE  RIOTERS  MARCH  ON  PHttADELPHIA.    [Chap.  XXV 

whence  the  dreaded  rioters  came  may  be  reached  froni 
Philadelphia  within  a  few  hours. 

Tidings  of  the  massacre  in  Lancaster  jail  had  ar- 
rived at  Philadelphia  on  the  twenty-ninth  of  Decern- 
ber,  and  with  them  came  the  rumor  that  numerous 
armed  mobs  were  already  on  their  march  to  the  city. 
Terror  and  confusion  were  universal;  and,  as  the 
place  was  defenceless,  no  other  expedient  suggested 
itself  than  the  pitiful  one  of  removing  the  objects  of 
popular  resentment  beyond  reach  of  danger.  Boats 
were  sent  to  Province  Island,  and  the  Indians  ordered 
to  embark  and  proceed  with  all  haste  down  the  river ; 
but,  the  rumor  proving  groundless,  a  messenger  was 
despatched  to  recall  the  fugitives.^  The  assurance 
that,  for  a  time  at  least,  the  city  was  ::>afe,  restored 
some  measure  of  tranquillity;  but,  as  intelligence 
of  an  alarming  kind  came  in  daily  from  the  coun- 
try. Governor  Penn  sent  to  General  Gage  an  ear- 
nest request  for  a  detachment  of  regidars  to  repel 
the  rioters;^  and,  in  the  interval,  means  tc  avert 
the  threatened  danger  were  eagerly  sough!.  A 
proposal  was  laid  before  the  Assembly  to  embark 
the  Indians  and  send  them  to  England;^  but  the 
scheme  was  judged  inexpedient,  and  another,  of  equal 
weakness,  adopted  in  its  place.  It  was  determined 
to  send  the  refugees  to  New  York,  and  place  them 
under  the  prot(?ction  of  the  Indian  superintendent, 
Sir  William  Johnson;  a  plan  as  hastily  executed  as 
timidly   conceived."*     At  midnight,  on   the   fourth  of 


1  LoBkiel,  Part  II.  218.  .,„,  ,  ,,u.     rur 

SMS.   Letter -Penn    to    Gage,  Tluladelphm.  5th  January  1<  64. 

Dec.  ;Vi.  "Satisfied  of  the  advantages  aris- 

■'  Votes  of  AHsenibly,  V.  21*;}.  injj  from  this  moasure,  I  liave  sent 

*  Extract  from  a   MH.   Letter —  them  thro' Jersey  and  your  Govcrii- 

Govemor  Penn  to  Goveraor  Colden.  mcnt  to  Sir  W.  Johnson,  &  desire 


from  the  coun- 


Chap.  XXV.]    THE  CONVERTS  SENT  TO  NEW  YORK.  431 

January,  no  measures  having  been  taken  to  gain  the 
consent  of  either  the  government  of  New  York  or 
Johnson  himself,  the  Indians  were  ordered  to  leave 
the  island,  and  proceed  to  the  city,  where  they  ar- 
rived a  little  before  daybreak,  passing  in  mournful 
procession,  thinly  clad  and  shivering  with  cold, 
through  the  silent  streets.  The  Moravian  Brethren 
supplied  them  with  food,  and  Fox,  the  commis- 
sary, with  great  humanity,  distributed  blankets 
among  them.  Before  they  could,  resume  their  prog- 
ress, the  city  was  astir;  and  as  they  passed  the 
suburbs,  they  were  pelted  and  hooted  at  by  the 
mob.  Captain  Robertson's  Highlanders,  who  had 
just  arrived  from  Lancaster,  were  ordered  to  escort 
them.  These  soldiers,  who  had  their  own  reasons 
for  hating  Indians,  treated  them  at  first  with  no  less 
insolence  and  rudeness  than  the  populace;  but  at 
length,  overcome  by  the  meekness  and  patience  of 
the  sufferers,  they  changed  their  conduct,  and  as- 
sumed a  tone  of  sympathy  and  kindness.^ 

Thus  e^'iorted,  the  refugees  pursued  their  dreary 
progress  through  the  country,  greeted  on  all  bides 
by  the  threats  and  curses  of  the  people.  When 
they  reached  Trenton,  they  were  received  by  Apty, 
the  commissary  et  that  place,  under  whose  charge 
they  continued  iheir  journey  towards  Amboy,  where 
several  small  vessels  had  been  provided  to  carry 
them  to  New  York.  Arriving  at  Amboy,  however, 
Apty,   to   his   great  surprise,   received  a  letter  fiom 


you  will  favour  tliem  with  your  pro- 
tection and  countenanco,  &  give  them 
the  proper  passes  for  their  journey  to 
Sir  William's  Seat. 

"I  have  recommended  it,  in  the 
most  pressing  terms,  to  the  Assem- 


bly, to  form  a  Bill  that  shall  enable 
me  to  apprehend  these  seditious  and 
barbarous  Murderers,  &  to  quell  the 
like  insunections  for  the  future." 

1  Loskiel,  Part  II.  220.   Heckewel- 
der,  Nar.  81. 


I 


432    TIIE  RIOTERS  MARCH  ON  PHILADELPUIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 

Governor  Coldcn  of  New  York,  forbidding  him  to 
bring  the  Indians  within  the  territories  of  that 
provuice.  A  second  letter,  from  General  Gage  to 
Captain  Robertson,  conveyed  orders  to  prevent  their 
advance;  and  a  third,  to  the  owners  of  the  vessels, 
threatened  heavy  penalties  if  they  should  bring  the 
Indians  to  the  city.^  The  charges  of  treachery 
against  the  Moravian  Indians,  the  burden  their  pres- 
ence would  occasion,  and  the  danger  of  popular  dis- 
turbance, were  the  chief  causes  which  induced  the 
government  of  New  York  to  adopt  this  course;  a 
course  that  might  have  been  foreseen  from  tlie 
beginning.^ 

Thus  disappointed  in  their  hopes  of  escape,  the 
hapless  Indians  remained  several  days  lodged  in  the 
ban-acks  at  Amboy,  where  they  passed  much  of  th.cir 
time  in  religious  services.  A  message,  however,  soon 
came  from  the  Governor  of  New  Jersey,  requiring 
them  to  leave  that  province;  and  they  were  com- 
pelled reluctantly  to  retrace  their  steps  to  PhUadeh 
phia.  A  detachment  of  a  hundred  and  seventy 
soldiers  had  arrived,  sent  by  General  Gage,  in  com- 


1  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Thomas  Apty  to  Governor  Pcnn. 

"  Sir :  — 

"  Agreeable  to  your  Ilonour'a  or- 
ders, I  passed  on  through  tlie  Prov- 
ince of  New  Jersey,  in  order  to  tako 
tlio  Indians  under  my  care  into  New 
York ;  but  no  sooner  was  I  reudy  to 
move  from  Amboy  with  the  Indians 
under  my  care,  tJian  I  was  greatly 
fiurpriz'd  &  embaiass'd  witli  express 
orders  from  the  Governor  of  New 
■^'ork  sent  to  Amboy,  strictly  forbid- 
ding the  bringing  of  tlieao  poor  In- 
dians into  his  Province,  &  charging 
all  his  ferrymen  not  to  let  tlicm  pass. 


I  have  wrote  to  the  Governor  of 
this  Province,  acquainting  him  with 
what  has  happened,  &  beggin}^  liis 
protection  for  the  Indians,  till  I  can 
receive  further  orders  from  your 
Honour  ;  which  I  hope  to  receive  by 
the  return  of  the  express,  &  must 
wait  hero  with  the  Indians  under  my 
care,  till  your  Honour  shall  be 
pleased  to  dispose  of  them  in  such 
manner  as  your  wisdom  shall  tliink 
fit." 

3  Letters  to  Governor  Pcim  from 
General  Gage,  Governor  Franklin 
of  New  Jersey,  and  Governor  Col- 
don  of  New  York.  See  Votes  of 
Assembly,  V.  300-^02. 


'UIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 


CiiAP.XXV.]         QUAKERS  AND  PRESBYTERIANS. 


433 


pliance  with  the  request  of  Governor  Penn;  and 
under  the  protection  of  these  troops,  the  exiles 
began  their  backward  journey.  On  the  twenty- 
fourth  of  Januar^r,  they  reached  Philadelphia,  where 
they  were  lodged  at  the  barracks  within  the  city, 
the  soldiers,  forgetful  of  former  prejudice,  no  longer 
refusing  them  entrance. 

The  return  of  the  Indians,  banishing  the  hope  of 
repose  with  which  the  citizens  had  flattered  them- 
selves, and  the  tidings  of  danger  coming  in  quick 
succession  from  the  country,  made  it  apparent  that 
no  time  must  be  lost;  and  the  Assembly,  laying 
aside  their  scruples,  unanimously  passed  a  bill  pro- 
viding means  for  the  public  defence.  The  pacific 
city  displayed  a  scene  of  unwonted  bustle.  All  who 
held  prope}  ty,  or  regarded  the  public  order,  might, 
it  should  oem,  have  felt  a  deep  interest  in  the 
issue;  yet  a  numerous  and  highly  respectable  class 
stood  idle  spectators,  or  showed,  at  best,  but  a  luke- 
warm zeal.  These  were  the  Presbyterians,  who  had 
naturally  felt  a  strong  sympathy  with  their  suffering 
brethren  of  the  frontier.  To  this  they  added  a  deep 
bitterness  against  the  Quakers,  greatly  increased  by 
a  charge,  most  uncharitably  brought  by  the  latter 
against  the  whole  Presbyterian  sect,  of  conniving  at 
and  abetting  tlie  murders  at  Conestoga  and  Lan- 
caster. They  regarded  the  Paxton  men  as  the  vic- 
tims of  Quaker  neglect  and  injustice,  and  showed  a 
strong  disposition  to  palliate,  or  excuse  altogether,  the 
violence  of  which  they  had  been  guilty.  Many  of 
them,  indeed,  were  secretly  inclined  to  favor  the  de- 
signs of  the  advancing  rioters;  hoping  that  by  their 
means    the    public    grievances    would    be    redressed, 

M  KK 


„;1l 


:ii± 


"f 


'  * 


434     THE  RIOTERS  MARCH  ON  PHILADELPHIA.    [Cha-  XXV. 

the   Quaker  faction  put   down,  and   the   social   and 
political  balance  of  the  state  restored.^ 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  sentiments  of  the 
Presbyterians,  and  of  the  city  mob,  the  rest  of  the 
inhabitants  bestirred  themselves  for  defence  with  all 
the  alacrity  of  fright.  The  Quakers  were  especially 
conspicuous  for  their  zeal.  Nothing  more  was  heard 
of  the  duty  of  non-resistance.  The  city  was  ran- 
sacked for  arms,  and  the  Assembly  passed  a  vote, 
extending  the  English  riot  act  to  the  province,  the 
Quaker  ricmbers  heartily  concurring  in  the  measure. 
Frf-nklin  whose  energy  and  practical  talents  made 
his  services  invaluable,  v^as  the  moving  spirit  of  the 
day ;  and  under  his  auspices,  the  citizens  were 
formed  into  militaiy  companies,  six  of  wliich  were 
of  infantry,  one  of  artillery,  and  two  of  horse. 
Besides  this  force,  several  thousands  of  the  inhab- 
itants, including  many  Quakers,  held  themselves 
ready  to  appear  in  arms  at  a  moment's  notice.^ 

These  preparations  were  yet  incomplete,  when,  on 
the  fourth  of  February,  couriers  came  in  with  the 
announcement  that  the  Paxton  men,  horse  and  foot, 
/^ere  already  within  a  short  distance  of  the  city. 
Proclamation  was  made  through  the  streets,  and  the 
people  called  to  arms.  A  mob  of  citizen  soldiers 
repaired  in  great  excitement  t^  the  barracks,  where 
the  Indians  were  lodged,  under  protection  of  the 
handful  of  regulars.  Here  the  crowd  remamed  all 
night,  drenched  with  the  rain,  and  in  a  dismal 
condition.^ 

1  For  indications  of  the  Mtcte  of  3  Gordon,  Hist  Penn.  406.    Peiui. 

feeling  amimg  the  Presbyteriaiii,  see  Gaz.  No.  1833. 

the  numerous  partisan  pamphlets  of  3  Haz.  Pa.  Reg.  XII.  10. 
tivi  day.    See  also  Appendix,  E. 


i 


PHIA.    [CiiA-  XXV. 

the   social   and 


Chap.  XXV.] 


EXCITEMENT  IN  THE  CITY.    ^   \;    A         435 


On  the  following  day,  Sunday,  a  barricade  M'as 
thrown  up  across  the  great  square  enclosed  by  the 
barracks,  and  eight  cannon,  to  which  four  more 
were  afterwards  added,  were  planted  to  sweep  the 
adjacent  streets.  These  pieces  were  discharged,  to 
(onvcy  to  the  rioters  an  idea  of  the  reception  pre- 
pared for  them ;  but  whatever  effect  the  explosion 
may  have  produced  on  the  ears  for  which  it  was 
intended,  the  new  and  appalling  sounds  struck  the 
Indians  in  the  barracks  with  speechless  terror.^ 
While  the  city  assumed  thi?  martial  attitude,  its 
rulers  thought  proper  to  adopt  the  safer,  though  less 
glorious  course  of  conciliation ;  and  a  deputation  of 
clergymen  was  sent  out  to  meet  the  rioters,  and 
pacify  them  by  reason  and  Scripture.  Towards  night, 
as  all  remained  quiet,  and  nothing  was  heard  from 
the  enemy,  the  turmoil  began  to  subside,  the  citizen 
soldiers  dispersed,  the  regulars  withdrew  into  quar- 
ters, and  the  city  recovered  somethmg  of  the  ordi- 
nary repose  of  a  Sabbath  evening. 

Through  the  early  part  of  the  night,  the  quiet 
was  undisturbed;  but  at  about  two  o'clock  in  the*" 
morning,  the  clang  of  bells  and  the  rollir<^  of  drums 
startled  the  people  from  their  slumbers,  and  count- 
less voices  from  the  street  echoed  the  alarm.  Im- 
mediately, in  obedience  to  the  previous  day's  orders, 
lighted  candles  were  placed  in  every  window,  till 
the  streets  seemed  illummated  for  a  festival.  The 
citizen  soldiers,  with  more  zeal  than  regularity,  mus- 
tered under  their  officers.  The  governor,  dreading 
an  irruption  of  the  mcL>,  repaired  to  the  house  of 
Franklin,  and  the  city  was  filled  with  the  jangling 
of   bells,     -ind     the    no    less    vehement    clamor    of 


I:*!' 


;(!■ 


'">;. .  ., : 


•n* 


1  Loskiel,  Part  II.  223 


I> 


I 


(■ 


436     TIIE  RIOTERS  MARCH  ON  PHILADELPHIA.    [Chap.  XXV 

tongues.      A    great    multitude    gathered    before    the 
barracks,  where   it  was   supposed   the   attack  would 
be    made;     and    among    them    was     seen    many   a 
Quaker,  with  musket  in  hand.     Some  of  the  more 
rigid  of  the  sect,  unwilling   to  take  arms  with  their 
less   scrupulous  brethren,  went  into   the  barracks  to 
console    and   reassure   the    Indians ;    who,    however, 
showed  much  more  composure  than  their  comforters, 
and  sat  waiting   the  result  with  invincible  calmness. 
Several    hours    of   suspense    and   excitement   passed, 
when  it  was  recollected,  that  though  the  other  fer- 
ries of  the   Schuylkill  had  been   secured,  a  crossing 
place,   known   as   the   Swedes'   Ford,  had   been   left 
open,  and  a  party   at  once   set  out  to   correct  this 
imlucky  oversight.^     Scarcely  were   they  gone,  when 
a  cry  rose    among    the    crowd   before   the   barracks, 
and  a  general  exclamation  was  heard  that  the  Pax- 
ton   Boys  were  coming.     In  fact,  a  band   of  horse- 
men  was    seen    advancing   up    Second    Street.    The 
people  crowded  to   get  out  of  the  way;   the   troops 
fell  into  order;    a  cannon  was   pointed  full  at  the 
horsemen,   and  the    gunner  was   about  to   apply  the 
match,   when   a  man   ran   out  from  the  crowd,  and 
covered  the  touchhole  with   his  hat.     The   cry  of  a 
false  alarm  was  heard,  and  it  was  soon   apparent  to 
all  that  the  supposed   Paxton  Boys  were  a  troop  of 
German  butchers  and   carters,  who  had  come  to  aid 
in  defence  of  the  city,  and  had  nearly  paid  dear  for 
their  patriotic  zeal."  ,   .y^ 


'  Ilintorical  Account  of  the  Late  Sparks,  Writings  of  Fmiiklin,  VII. 

Disturbances,  4.  21)3. 

3  Ilaz.   Pa.   Reg.  XII.   11.    Me-  The  best  remaining  account  of 

moirs  of  a  Life  passed  chiefly  in  these  riots  %vill  bo  f'^und  undor  thn 

Pennsylvania,     .'R).       Heokewelder,  first  authority  cited  uuove.    It  ciii- 

Nar.    85.     Loskiel,    Port    II.   *W3.  sists  of  a  long  letter,  written  in  ;i 


?HIA.    [Chap.  XXV 


Chap.  XXV.]         PAXTON  MEN  AT  GERMANTOWN. 


t    I 


437 


tings  of  Franklin,  VII. 


The  tumult  of  this  alarm  was  hardly  over,  when 
a  fresh  commotion  was  raised  by  the  return  of  the 
men  who  had  gone  to  secure  the  Swedes'  Ford,  and 
who  now  reported  that  they  had  been  too  late;  that 
the  rioters  had  crossed  the  river,  and  were  already 
at  Germantown.  Those  who  had  crossed  proved  to 
be  the  van  of  the  Paxton  men,  two  hundred  in 
number,  and  commanded  by  Matthew  Smith;  who, 
learning  what  welcome  was  prepared  for  them, 
thought  it  prudent  to  remain  quietly  at  German- 
town,  instead  of  marching  fonvard  to  certain  de- 
struction. In  the  afternoon,  many  of  the  inhabitants 
gathered  courage,  and  went  out  to  visit  them.  They 
found  nothing  very  extraordinary;^  in  the  aspect  of 
the  rioters,  who,  in  the  words  of  a  writer  of  the 
day,  were  "a  set  of  fellows  in  blanket  coats  and 
moccasons,  like  our  Indian  traders  or  back  country 
wagoners,  all  armed  with  rifles  and  tomahawks,  and 
some  with  pistols  stuck  in  their  belts."  ^  They  re- 
ceived their  visitors  with  the  courtesy  which  might 
doubtless  be  ascribed  in  great  measure  to  their 
knowledge  of  the  warlike  preparatioiis  within  the 
city;  and  the  report  made  by  the  adventurers,  on 
their  return,  greatly  tended  to  allay  the  general 
excitement. 

The    alarm,    however,   was    again    raised    on    the 


very  animated  strain,  by  a  Quaker 
to  his  friend,  containing  a  detailed 
account  of  what  passed  in  the  city 
from  the  first  alarm  of  the  rioters  to 
tlie  conclusion  of  the  affair.  The 
v.ritcr,  tliough  a  Quaker,  is  free 
from  the  prejudices  of  his  sect,  nor 
does  he  hesitate  to  notice  the  incon- 
sistency of  his  bretliren  appearing 
in  amis.    Sec  Appendix,  R. 


The  scene  before  the  barracks, 
and  the  narrow  escape  of  the  Ger- 
man butchers,  was  made  the  subject 
of  several  poems  and  farces,  Avritten 
by  members  of  the  Presbyterian 
faction,  to  turn  their  opponents  into 
ridicule  ;  for  which,  indeed,  the  sub- 
ject offered  tempting  facilities. 

I  Haz.  Pa.  Reg.  XU.  11. 


KK' 


1 1 


438     THE  RIOTERS  MARCH  ON  PHILADELPHIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 

following  day,  and  the  cry  to  arms  once  more 
resounded  through  the  city  of  peace.  The  citizen 
soldiers  mustered  with  exemplary  despatch;  but  their 
ardor  was  quenched  by  a  storm  of  rain,  which 
drove  them  all  under  shelter.  A  neighboring  Quaker 
meeting-house  happened  to  be  open,  and  a  company 
of  the  volunteers  betook  themselves  in  haste  to  this 
convenient  asylum.  Forthwith,  the  place  was  bris- 
tling with  bayonets,  and  the  walls  which  had  listened 
so  often  to  angry  denunciations  against  war  now 
echoed  the  clang  of  weapons  —  an  mispeakable  scan- 
dal  to  the  elders  of  the  sect,  and  an  occasion  of 
pitiless  satire  to  the  Presbyterians.*  «.t, 

^  This  alarm  proving  groundless,  like  all  the  others, 
the  governor  and  council  proceeded  to  the  execution 
of  a  design  which  they  had  formed  the  day  before. 
They  had  resolved,  in  pursuance  of  their  timid 
policy,  to  open  negotiations  with  the  rioters,  and 
Ijersuade  them,  if  possible,  to  depart  peacefully, 
Many  of  the  citizens  protested  against  the  plan,  and 
the  soldiers  volunteered  to  attack  the  Paxton  men; 
but  none  were  so  vehement  as  the  Quakers,  who 
held  that  fire  and  steel  were  the  only  welcome  that 
should  be  accorded  to  such  violators  of  the  pubhc 
peace,  and  audacious  blasphemers  of  the  society  of 
Friends.**  The  plan  was  nevertheless  sustained,  and 
Franklin,  with  three  other  citizens  of  character  and 
influence,  set  out  for  Germantown.  The  rioters  re- 
ceived them  with  marks  of  respect,  and,  after  a  long 
conference,    the    leaders    of   the    mob    were    so   far 

1  llaz.  Pa.  Reg.  XII.  12.  thoQuakers,  in  tlieir  elaborate  replies 

s  This  BtatcMient  is  made  in  "  The  to  these  pnblications,  do  not  attempt 

Quaker  Unmasked,"  and  other  Pres-  to  deny  the  fact. 

bytcrian  pamphlets  of  the  day ;  and 


PHIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 


Chap.  XXV.]  TREATY  WITH  THE  MOTERS. 


439 


wrought  upon  as  to  give  over  their  hostile  designs, 
the  futility  of  which  was  now  sufficiently  apparent.^ 
An  assurance  was  given,  on  the  part  of  the  govem- 
jTient,  that  their  complaints  should  have  a  hearing, 
and  safety  was  guarantied  to  those  of  their  number 
who  should  enter  the  city  as  their  representatives 
and  advocates-  For  this  purpose,  Matthew  Smith 
and  James  Gibson  were  appointed  by  the  popular 
voice,  and  two  papers,  a  Declaration  and  a  Eemon- 
strance,  were  drawn  up,  addressed  to  the  governor 
and  Assembly.  With  this  assurance  that  their  cause 
should  be  represented,  the  rioters  signified  their  will- 
ingness to  return  home,  glad  to  escape  so  easily 
from  an  affair  which  had  begun  to  threaten  worse 
consequences. 

Towards  evening,  the  commissioners,  returning  to 
the  city,  reported  the  success  of  their  negotiations. 
CJpon  this,  the  citizen  soldiers  were  conA  encd  in  front 
of  the  court  house,  and  addressed  by  a  member  of  the 
council.  He  thanked  them  for  their  zeal,  and  assured 
them  there  was  no  farther  occasion  for  their  services, 
since-  the  Ppxton  men,  though  falsely  represented  as 
enemies  of  {  vernment,  were  in  fact  its  friends,  en- 
tertaining no  worse  design  than  that  of  gaining  relief 
to  their  sufferings,  without  injury  to  the  city  or  its 
mhabitants.  The  people,  ill  satisfied  with  what  they 
heard,  returned  in  no  placid  temper  to  their  homes.** 
On  the  morrow,  the  good  effect  of  the  treaty  was  ap- 
parent in  a  general  opening  of  schools,  shops,  and 
warehouses,  and  a  return  to  the  usual  activity  of 
business,  whicli  had  been  wholly  suspended  for  some 


'''11*11' I 


1  Sparks,  Writings  of   Franklin,     148.    Rupp,  Hist.  York  and  Lancas- 
VII.  293.  ter  Counties,  362 

^  Barton,  Memoirs  of  Rittenhouse, 


440     THE  RIOTEIIS  MARCH  ON  7  'iliADELPHIA.    | Chap.  XXV 

days.     The  security  was  not  of  long  duration.     Before 
noon,  an  up'    ,r  more   tumultuous   than  ever,  a  cry 
to  arms,  an'l  u  general  exclamation  that  the  Paxton 
Boys  had   broken  the   treaty  and  were  entering  the 
town,  startled   the    indignant   citizens.      The    streets 
were  filled  in  an  instant  with  a  rabble  of  armed  mcr- 
chants  and  shopmen,  who  for  once  were  fully  bent 
on  slaughter,  and  resolved  to  put  a  summary  end  to 
the  long-protracted  evil.     Quiet  was   again   restored, 
when  it  was   found   that   the   alarm  was   caused  by 
about  thirty  of  the  frontiersmen,  who,  with  singular 
audacity,  were  riding  into  the  city  on  a  visit  of  curi- 
osity.    As   their  deportment  was   inoffensive,   it  was 
thought    unwise   to    molest   them.     Several   of  these 
visitors   had   openly  boasted   of  the    part   they  had 
taken  in  the  Conestoga  murders,  and  a  large  reward 
had  been   offered  for    their   apprehension;   yet   such 
was  the  state  of  factions  in   the  city,  and  such  the 
dread  of   the  frontiersmen,   that  no  man   dared  lay 
hand  on  the  criminals.     The  party  proceeded  to  the 
barracks,  where   they   requested  to  see   the   Indians- 
declaring  that  they  could  point  out  several  who  had 
been  in  the  battle   against  Colonel   Bouquet,  or  en- 
gaged  in  other  acts  of  open   hostility.     The  request 
was  granted,  but  no  discovery  made.     Upon  this,  it 
was  rumored  abroad  that  the   Quakers  had  removed 
the  guilty  individuals  to  screen  them  from  just  pun- 
ishment;   an    accusation   which,  for   a   time,   excited 
much  ill  blood  between  the  rival  factions. 

The  thirty  frontiersmen  withdrew  from  the  city,  and 
soon  followed  the  example  of  their  companions,  who 
had  begun  to  remove  homeward,  leaving  their  leaders, 
Smith  and  Gibson,  to  adjust  theii*  differences  with 
the  government.     Their  departure   gave  great  relief 


IIA.    jCiiAP.  XXV 


Ciur.  XXV.] 


PAPER  WARFARE. 


441 


Thou-h 


vii' 


u 


to  the  ]>oople  of  the  neighborhood,  to  whom  they  had, 
at  times,  conduct*  fT  themselves  after  a  fashion  some- 
what barbarous  and  uncivil,  utterinp;  hideous  out- 
cries, in  imitation  of  ^he  war-whoop;  knocking  down 
peaceable  citiz' ns,  luid  pretending  to  scalp  them; 
thrusting  th(")-  (^  ns  in  at  windows,  and  committing 
uiihcaid-'^f  r-    ""wes  n^^ong  hen-roosts  and  hog-pens.^ 

was  now  safe  from  all  external 
sprnng  up  within  its  precinct' i. 
nj  means  as  perilous,  were  not 
mgry  than  those  menaced  from 
an  irruption  of  me  rioters.^  The  rival  factions  turned 
savagely  upon  each  other,  while  the  more  philosophic 
citizens  stood  laughing  by,  and  ridiculed  them  both. 
The  Presbyterians  grew  furious,  the  Quakers  dogged 
and  spiteful.  Pamphlets,  farces,  dialogues,  and  poems 
came  forth  in  quick  succession.  Tliese  sometimes 
exhibited  a  few  traces  of  wit,  and  even  of  reasoning ; 
but  abuse  was  the  favorite  weapon,  and  it  is  difficult 
to  say  which  of  the  combatants  handled  it  with  the 


danger,  c<  tc 
which,  tl  (5 
less  clamorous 


■*i 


■:i- 


'"i 


1  David  Rittenhouse,  in  one  of  his 
letters,  speaks  with  great  horror  of 
the  enonnities  committed  by  the  Pax- 
ton  Boys,  and  enumerates  various 
particulars  of  their  conduct.  See 
Barton,  Mem.  of  Rittenhouse,  148. 

2  "  Whether  the  Paxton  men  were 
'more  sinned  against  than  sinning,' 
was  a  question  which  was  agitated 
with  so  much  ardor  and  acrimony,  that 
even  the  schoolboys  became  warmly 
engaged  in  the  contest.  For  my  own 
part,  though  of  the  religious  sect 
which  had  been  long  warring  with 
the  Quakers,  I  was  entirely  on  the 
side  of  humanity  and  public  duty,  (or 
ill  this  do  I  beg  tlic  question  ?)  and 
perfcclly  recollect  my  mdignation  at 
the  sentiments  of  one  of  tlie  ushers 
■viiQ  was  on  the  opposite  side.    His 

56 


name  was  Davis,  and  he  waa  really  a 
kind,  good-natured  man;  yet  from 
the  dominion  of  his  religious  or  polit- 
ical prejudices,  he  haa  been  led  to 
apologize  for,  if  not  to  approve  of  an 
outrage,  which  was  a  disgrace  to  a 
civilized  people.  He  had  been  among 
the  riflemen  on  their  coming  into 
the  city,  and,  talking  with  them  upon 
the  subject  of  the  Lancaster  mas- 
sacre, and  particularly  of  the  killing 
of  Will  Sock,  the  most;  distinguished 
of  the  victims,  related  with  an  air  of 
approbation,  this  rodomontade  of  the 
real  or  pretended  murderer.  '  I,'  said 
he,  'am  the  man  who  killed  Will 
Sock  —  this  is  the  arm  that  stabbed 
him  to  the  heart,  and  I  glory  in  it' " 
—  Memoirs  of  a  lAfe  chiefly  passed  in 
Pennsylvania,  40. 


;-»*. 


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442     THE  RIOTERS  MARCH  ON  PHILADELPHIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 

greater  freedom  and  dexterity.^  The  Quakers  accused 
the  Presbyterians  of  conniving  at  the  act  of  murder- 
ers, of  perverting  Scripture  for  their  defence,  and  of 
aiding  the  rioters  with  counsel  and  money,  in  their 
audacious  attempt  against  the  public  peace.  The 
Presbyterians,  on  their  part,  with  about  equal  justice, 
charged  the  Quakers  with  leaguing  themselves  with 
the  common  enemy,  and  exciting  them  to  war.  They 
held  up  to  scorn  those  accommodating  principles 
which  denied  the  aid  of  arms  to  suffering  fellow- 
countrymen,  but  justified  their  use  at  the  first  call 
of  self-interest.  The  Quaker  warrior,  in  his  sober  garb 
of  ostentatious  simplicity,  his  prim  person  adorned 
with  military  trappings,  and  his  hands  grasping  a 
musket  which  threatened  more  peril  to  himself  than 
to  his  enemy,  was  a  subject  of  ridicule  too  tempting 
to  be  overlooked. 


// 


1  "  PersonB  who  were  intimate 
now  scarcely  speak ;  or  if  they  hap- 
pen to  meet  and  converse,  presently 
get  to  quarrelling.  In  short,  harmony 
and  love  seem  to  be  banished  from 
amongst  us." 

The  above  is  an  extract  from  the 
letter  so  often  referred  to.  A  frag- 
ment of  the  "  Paxtoniad,"  one  of  the 
poems  of  the  day,  is  given  in  the  Ap- 
pendix. Few  of  the  party  pamphlets 
are  worth  quoting,  and  the  titles  of 
some  of  them  will  give  an  idea  of 
their  character:  The  Quaker  Un- 
masked —  A  Looking-Glass  for  Pres- 
byterians—  A  BatUe  of  Squirt  — 
Plain  Truth— Plain  Truth  found  to 
be  Plain  Falsehood  —  The  Author  of 
Plain  Truth  Stripped  Stark  Naked 

—  Clothes  for  a  Stark  Naked  Author 

—  The    Squabble,  a   Pastoral    Ec- 
logne  —  etc.,  etc. 

The  pamphlet  called  Plain  Tnith 
drew  down  the  especial  indignation 
of  tho  Quakers,  and  the  fouowing 
extract  from  one  of  their  replies  to  it 


may  serve  as  a  fair  specimen  of  the 
temper  of  the  combatants:  "But 
how  came  you  to  give  your  piece 
the  Title  of'^  Plain  Truth,  if  you  had 
called  it  downright  Lies,  it  would 
have  agreed  better  with  the  Con- 
tents ;  the  Title  therefore  is  a  de- 
ception, and  the  contents  manifestly 
false :  in  short  I  have  carefully  exam- 
ined it,  and  find  in  it  no  less  than  17 
Positive  Lies,  and  10  false  Insinua- 
tions contained  in  15  Pages,  Mon- 
strous, and  from  what  has  been  said 
must  conclude  that  when  you  wrote 
it,  Truth  was  banished  entu-ely  from 
you,  arid  that  ^ou  wrote  it  with  a 

truly  Pious  Lying  P n  Spirit, 

which  appears  in  almost  every  Line ! " 
The  peaceful  society  of  Friends 
found  among  its  ranks  more  than  one 
R'lch  champion  as  the  ingenious  wri- 
ter of  the  above.  Two  collections  of 
these  pamphlets  have  been  examined 
one  preserved  in  the  City  Library  of 
Philadelphia,  and  the  other  in  that  of 
the  New  York  Historical  Society. 


'HIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 


Chap.  XXV.]     MEMORIALS  OF  THE  PAXTON  MEN; 


443 


While  this  paper  warfare  was  raging  in  the  city, 
the  representatives  of  the  frontiersmen,  Smith  and 
Gihson,  had  laid  before  the  Assembly  the  memorial, 
entitled  the  Eemonstrance ;  and  to  this  a  second  paper, 
styled  a  Declaration,  was  soon  afterwards  added.^ 
Various  grievances  were  specL&ed,  for  which  redress 
was  demanded.  It  was  urged  that  those  counties 
where  the  Quaker  interest  prevailed  sent  to  the  Assem- 
bly more  than  theiir  due  share  of  representatives. 
The  memorialists  bitterly  complained  of  a  law,  then 
before  the  Assembly,  by  which  those  charged  with 
murdering  Indians  were  to  be  brought  to  trial,  not 
in  the  district  where  the  act  was  committed,  but  in 
one  of  the  three  eastern  counties.  They  represented 
the  Moravian  converts  as  enemies  in  disguise,  and 
denounced  the  policy  which  yielded  them  protection 
and  support  while  the  sick  and  wounded  of  the 
frontiers  were  cruelly  abandoned  to  their  misery. 
They  begged  that  a  suitable  reward  might  be  offered 
for  scalps,  since  the  want  of  such  encouragement 
had  "  damped  the  spirits  of  many  brave  men."  An- 
gry invectives  against  the  Quakers  succeeded.  To 
the  "villany,  infatuation,  and  influence  of  a  certain 
faction,  that  have  got  the  politioel  reins  in  their 
hands,  and  tamely  tyrannize  o>er  the  other  good 
subjects  of  the  province,"  were  to  be  ascribed,  urged 
the  memorialists,  the  intolerable  evils  which  afflicted 
the  people.  The  Quakers,  they  insisted,  had  held 
private  treaties  with  the  Indians,  encouraged  them 
to  hostile  acts,  and  excused  their  cruelties  on  the 
charitable  plea  that  this  was  their  method  of  mak- 
ing war.  -r    ;  ^-i    .,:    ,v.,',.;    ,; 


-  ,-m,  1^, 


i,i^^^^i 


ii:-^: 


See  Appendix,  E. 


Mi'Ws- 


t;"' 


m^ 


M 


,  >4 


^'if 


n 


■!   , 


444     THE  BIOTEBS  MARCH  ON  PHILADELPHIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 

The  memorials  were  laid  before  a  committee,  who 
recommended  that  a  public  conference  should  be  held 
with  Smith  and  Gibson,  to  consider  the  groimds  of 
complaint.  To  this  the  governor,  in  view  of  the  ille- 
gal position  assumed  by  the  frontiersmen,  would  not 
give  his  consent,  an  assertion  of  dignity  that  would 
have  done  him  more  honor  had  he  made  it  when  the 
rioters  were  in  arms  before  the  city,  at  which  time 
he  had  shown  an  abundant  alacrity  to  negotiate.  It 
was  intimated  to  Smith  and  Gibson  that  they  might 
leave  Philadelphia;  and  the  Assembly  soon  after  be- 
came involved  in  its  protracted  quarrels  with  the 
governor,  relative  to  the  granting  of  supplies  for  the 
service  of  the  ensuing  campaign.  Hie  supply  bill 
passed,  as  mentioned  in  a  former  chapter;  and  the 
consequent  military  preparations,  together  with  a 
threatened  renewal  of  the  war  on  the  part  of  the 
enemy,  engrossed  the  minds  of  the  frontier  people, 
and  caused  the  excitements  of  the  winter  to  be  for- 
gotten. No  action  on  the  two  memorials  was  ever 
taken  by  the  Ast*'  y,  and  the  memorable  Paxton 
riots  had  no  other  definite  result  than  that  of  ex- 
posing the  weakness  and  distraction  of  the  provincial 
government,  and  demonstrating  the  folly  and  absurdity 
of  all  principles  of  non-resistance. 

Yet  to  the  student  of  human  nature  these  events 
supply  abundant  food  for  reflection.  In  the  frontiers- 
man, goaded,  by  the  madness  of  his  misery,  to  deeds 
more  horrible  than  those  by  which  he  suffered,  and 
half  believing  that,  in  the  perpetration  of  these  atroci- 
ties, he  was  but  the  minister  of  divine  vengeance; 
in  the  Quaker,  absorbed  by  one  narrow  philanthropy, 
and  closing  his  ears  to  the  outcries  of  his  wretched 
countrymen;    in   the    Presbyterian,  urged   by  party 


HIA.    [Chap.  XXV. 


Chap.  XXV.] 


THE  MORAVIAN  CONVEBTS. 


445 


spirit  and  sectarian  zeal  to  countenance  the  crimes 
of  rioters  and  murderers,  —  in  each  and  all  of  these 
lies  an  embodied  satire,  which  may  find  its  applica- 
tion in  every  age  of  the  world,  and  every  condition 
of  society. 

The  Moravian  Indians,  the  occasion  —  and,  at  least, 
as  regards  most  of  them,  the  innocent  occasion  —  of 
the  tumult,  remained  for  a  full  year  in  the  barracks 
of  Philadelphia.  There  they  endured  frightful  suffer- 
ings from  the  small-pox,  which  destroyed  more  than  a 
third  of  their  number.  After  the  conclusion  of  peace, 
they  were  permitted  to  depart,  and,  having  thanked 
the  governor  for  his  protection  and  care,  they  with- 
drew to  the  banks  of  the  Susquehanna,  where,  under 
the  direction  of  the  missionaries,  they  once  more 
formed  a  prosperous  settlement.* 

1  Loskiel,  Part  II.  231.  i 


•5^  -S- 


.avtife^K>ifii«. 


LL 


:-,  i^  \ 


■'w* ' 


*. 


'".'i     ■!  l»,-S-j^^^' 


^..-j.    :i\i- 


■i-M:^:-' 


♦ 


litit 


.■^■■iC    '-f-.'-v 


%i;.  %',i;.,bTm 


't    ■ .-.:  .!■!,■  'p'rrr 


•<-:^</;^f3jr:   tt< 


.  1 


^.;,.;;("; 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 


BRADSTREETS  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES. 


The  campaign  of  1763,  a  year  of  disaster  to  the 
English  colonies,  was  throughout  of  a  defensive 
nature,  and  no  important  blow  hEid  been  struck 
against  the  enemy.  With  the  opening  of  the  fol- 
lowing spring,  preparations  were  made  to  renew  the 
war  on  a  more  decisive  plan.  Before  the  commence- 
ment of  hostilities,  Sir  William  Johnson  and  his 
deputy,  George  Croghan,  each  addressed  to  the  lords 
of  trade  a  memorial,  setting  forth  the  character, 
temper,  and  resources  of  the  Indian  tribes,  and  sug- 
gesting the  course  of  conduct  which  they  judged  it 
expedient  to  pursue.  They  represented  that,  before 
the  conquest  of  Canada,  all  the  tribes,  jealous  of 
French  encroachment,  had  looked  to  the  English  to 
befriend  and  protect  them,  but  that  now  one  gen- 
eral feeling  of  distrust  and  hatred  filled  them  all. 
They  added  that  the  neglect  and  injustice  of  the 
British  government,  the  outrages  of  rufiian  borderers 
and  debauched  traders,  and  the  insolence  of  EngUsh 
soldiers,  had  aggravated  this  feeling,  and  given  double 
effect  to  the  restless  machinations  of  the  defeated 
French,  who,  to  revenge  themselves  on  their  con- 
querors, were  constantly  stirring  up  the  Indians  to 
war.  A  race  so  brave  and  tenacious  of  liberty,  so 
wild    and    erratic    in    their   habits,    dwelling   in   a 


Chap.  XXVI]     MEMORIALS  ON  INDIAN  AFFAIRS. 


447 


country  so  savage  and  inaccessible,  could  not  be  ex- 
terminated or  reduced  to  subjection  without  an  im- 
moderate   expenditure    of    men,   money,    and    time. 
The    true   policy    of   the    British    government   was 
therefore  to  conciliate ;  to  soothe  their  jealous  pride, 
galled  by  injuries  and  insults;    to  gratify  them  by 
presents,  and  treat  them  with  a  respect  and  attention 
to   which    their   haughty   spirit  would   not   fail   to 
respond.     We  ought,  they  said,  to  make  the  Indians 
our  friends,  and,  by  a  just,  consistent,  and  straight- 
forward course,  seek  to  gain  their  esteem,  and  wean 
them   from   their  partiality  to   the   French.     To   re- 
move the   constant   irritation  which   arose  from  the 
intrusion  of  the  white  inhabitants  on  their  territory, 
Croghan  urged  the  expediency  of  purchasing  a  large 
tract  of  land  to  the  westward  of  the  English  settle- 
ments; thus  confining  the  tribes  to  remoter  hunting- 
grounds.     For  a  moderate  sum,   the  Indians   would 
part  with  as  much  land  as  might  be  required.     A 
Uttle  more,  laid  out  in  annual  presents,  would  keep 
them  in  good  temper;  and  by  judicious  management, 
all   hostile  collision  might  be  prevented,  till,  by  the 
extension  of  the  settlements,  it  should  become  expe- 
dient to  make  yet  another  purchase.^ 

This  plan  was  afterwards  carried  into  execution 
by  the  British  government.  Founded  as  it  is  upon 
the  supposition  that  the  Indian  tribes  must  grad- 
ually dwindle  and  waste  away,  it  might  well  have 
awakened  the  utmost  fears  of  that  unhappy  people. 
Yet  none  but  an  enthusiast  or  fanatic  could  con- 
demn it  as  iniquitous.  To  reclaim  the  Indians  from 
their  savage  state  has  again  and  again  been  attempted. 


'0-' 


^  MS.  Johnson  Papers. 


m 


It'. 


-m 


iJ'     ' 


I     li 


1       <;| 
t  • 


i  ; 


448  BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Cuxr.  XXVL 

and  each  attempt  has  failed.  Their  intractable, 
unchanging  character  leaves  no  other  alternative 
than  their  gradual  extinction,  or  the  abandonment 
of  the  western  world  to  eternal  barbarism;  and  of 
this  and  other  similar  plans,  whether  the  offspring 
of  British  or  American  legislation,  it  may  alike  be 
said  that  sentimental  philanthropy  will  find  it  easier 
to  cavil  at  than  to  amend  them.  **« 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  merits  of  the  scheme 
proposed  to  the  lords  of  trade,  it  was  necessary, 
before  attempting  its  execution,  to  suppress  the  exist- 
ing outbreak  —  to  beat  the  Indians  into  submission, 
and  bind  them  by  treaties  as  firm  and  stringent  as 
circumstances  would  admit.  With  this  view,  it  was 
resolved  to  march  two  armies,  from  different  points, 
into  the  heart  of  the  Indian  country.  The  command 
of  the  first  was  given  to  Colonel  Bouquet,  with 
orders  to  advance  to  Fort  Pitt,  and  thence  to  pen- 
etrate into  the  midst  of  the  Delaware  and  Shawanoe 
settlements.  The  other  army,  under  Colonel  Brad- 
street,  was  to  ascend  the  lakes,  and  force  the  tribes 
of  Detroit  and  the  regions  beyond  to  unconditional 
submission.  The  name  of  Bradstreet  was  already 
well  known  in  America.  At  a  dark  and  ill-omened 
period  of  the  French  war,  he  had  crossed  Lake  On- 
tario with  a  force  of  three  thousand  provincials,  and 
captured  Fort  Frontenac,  a  formidable  stronghold  of 
the  French,  commanding  the  outlet  of  the  lake.  He 
had  distinguished  himself,  moreover,  by  his  gallant 
conduct  in  a  skirmish  with  the  French  and  Indians 
on  the  River  Oswego.  These  exploits  had  gained 
for  him  a  reputation  beyond  his  merits.  He  was  a 
man  of  more  activity  than  judgment,  perverse,  self- 
willed,  vain,  and  eager  for  notoriety;  qualities  which 


i  -\ 


OES.    [CHAr.XXVL 


Chap.  XXVI]       DEPARTURE  OF  BRAD8TREBT. 


449 


became  sufficiently  apparent  before   the  end  of  the 
campaign.^ 

Several  of  the  northern  provinces  furnished  troops 
for  the  expedition;  but  these  levies  did  not  arrive 
until  after  the  appointed  time,  and,  as  the  service 
promised  neither  honor  nor  advantage,  they  were 
drawn  from  the  scum  and  refuse  of  the  population, 
looking  more  like  candidates  for  a  hospital  than  like 
men  fit  for  the  arduous  duty  before  them.  The  ren- 
dezvous of  the  troops  was  at  Albany,  and  thence 
they  took  their  departure  about  the  end  of  June. 
Adopting  the  usual  military  route  to  the  westward, 
they  passed  up  the  Mohawk,  crossed  the  Oneida 
Lake,  and  descended  the  swift  current  of  the  Os- 
wego. The  boats  and  bateaux,  crowded  with  men, 
passed  between  the  war-worn  defences  of  Oswego, 
which  guarded  the  mouth  of  the  river  on  either 
hand,  and,  issuing  forth  upon  Lake  Ontario,  steered 
in  long  procession  over  its  restless  waters.  A  violent 
storm  threw  the  flotilla  into  confusion;  and  several 
days  elapsed  before  the  ramparts  of  Fort  Niag- 
ara rose  m  sight,  breaking  the  tedious  monotony  of 
the  forest-covered  shores.  The  troops  landed  beneath 
its  walls.  The  surrounding  plains  w'l  3  soon  dotted 
with  the  white  tents  of  the  little  irmy,  whose 
strength,  far  inferior  to  the  original  design,  did  not 
exceed  twelve  hundred  men. 


.   >\ 


1  In  the  correspondence  of  Gen- 
eral Wolfe,  recently  published  in 
Tait's  Magazine,  this  distinguished 
officer  speaks  in  high  terms  of  Brad- 
street's  military  character.  His  re- 
marks, however,  have  reference  solely 
to  the  capture  of  Fort  Frontenac ; 
and  he  seems  to  have  derived  his 
impressions  from  the  public  prints, 
as  he  had  no  personal  knowledge  of 
Bradstreet      The   view   expressed 

57 


above  is  derived  from  the  letters  of 
Bradstreet  himself,  from  the  corre- 
spondence of  General  Gage  and  Sir 
William  Johnson,  and  from  a  MS. 
paper  containing  numerous  details 
of  his  conduct  during  the  campaign 
of  1764,  and  drawn  up  by  the  officers 
who  served  under  him. 

This  paper  is  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  W.  L.  Stone. 

LL* 


:i 


460  BRADSTREETS  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


1 

f 

\\  ^ 

'I 

'!  ■■ 

'  1 

■f'-  ': 

:t 

'\ 

He 
ti- 


ll i  «$■ 


f!^ 


A  striking  spectacle  greeted  them  on  their  land- 
ing. Hundreds  of  Indian  cabins  were  clustered 
along  the  skirts  of  the  forest,  and  a  countless  mul> 
titude  of  savages,  in  all  the  picturesque  variety  of 
their  barbaric  costume,  were  roaming  over  the  fields, 
or  lounging  about  the  shores  of  the  lake.  Towards 
the  close  of  the  previous  winter.  Sir  William  John- 
son had  despatched  Indian  messengers  to  the  tribes 
far  and  near,  warning  them  of  the  impending  blow, 
and  urging  all  who  were  friendly  to  the  English,  or 
'^'  disposed  to  make  peace  while  there  was  yet  time,  to 
meet  him  at  Niagara,  and  listen  to  his  words. 
Throughout  the  winter,  the  sufferings  of  the  Indians 
i  i  had  been  great  and  general.  The  suspension  of  the 
fur-trade;  the  consequent  want  of  ammunition,  cloth- 
ing, and  other  articles  of  necessity;  the  failure  of 
expected  aid  from  the  French;  and,  above  all,  the 
knowledge  that  some  of  their  own  people  had  taken 
up  arms  for  the  English,  combined  to  quench  their 
thirst  for  war.  Johnson's  messengers  had  therefore 
been  received  with  unexpected  favor,  and  many  had 
complied  with  his  invitation.  Some  came  to  protest 
their  friendship  for  the  English;  others  hoped,  by 
an  early  submission,  to  atone  for  past  misconduct. 
Some  came  as  spies;  while  others,  again,  were  lured 
by  the  hope  of  receiving  presents,  and  especially  a 
draught  of  English  milk,  that  is  to  say,  a  dram  of 
whiskey. 

The  trader  Alexander  Henry,  the  same  who  so 
;  narrowly  escaped  the  massacre  at  Michillimackinac, 
was  with  a  party  of  Ojibwas  at  the  Sault  Ste. 
Marie,  when  a  canoe,  filled  with  warriors,  arrived, 
bringing  the  message  of  Sir  William  Johnson.  A 
council    was    called,    and    the    principal   messenger, 


KES.    [CnAP.  XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.] 


.*/ 


INDIAN  ORACLE. 


,  :^ii;'.       461 


offering  a  belt  of  wampum,  spoke  as  follows :  "  My 
friends  and  brothers,  I  am  come  with  this  belt  from 
our  great  father.  Sir  William  Johnson.  He  desired 
me  to  come  to  you,  as  his  ambassador,  and  tell  you 
that  he  is  making  a  great  feast  at  Fort  Niagara; 
that  his  kettles  are  all  ready,  and  his  fires  lighted. 
He  invites  you  to  partake  of  the  feast,  in  common 
with  your  friends,  the  Six  Nations,  who  have  all 
made  peace  with  the  English.  He  advises  you  to 
seize  this  opportunity  of  doing  the  same,  as  you 
cannot  otherwise  fail  of  being  destroyed;  for  the 
English  are  on  their  march  with  a  great  army, 
which  will  be  joined  by  different  nations  of  Indians. 
In  a  word,  before  the  fall  of  the  leaf  they  will  be 
at    Michillimackinac,    and    the    Six    Nations    with 

them."  -i    i*.WJ    ■>■  ,^'^^'■l  ,  ;.-^>^-vi   ^v^*"'    i-n:',fS-a    !.'>'* 

The    Ojibwas    had    been    debating    whether    they 
should  go   to   Detroit,  to   the  assistance   of  Pontiac, 
who  had  just  sent  them  a  message  to   that  effect; 
but  the  speech  of  Johnson's  messenger  turned   the 
current  of  their  thoughts.      Most  of  them  were  in 
favor    of   accepting    the   invitation;    but,   distrusting 
mere  human  wisdom  in   a  crisis   so  important,  they 
resolved,  before  taking  a  decisive  step,  to  invoke  the 
superior  intelligence  of  the  Great  Turtle,  the   chief 
of  all   tho    spirits.     A    huge   wigwam   was   erected, 
capable  of  containing  the  whole  population  of  the 
little   village.     In    the   centre,  a    sort   of   tabernacle 
was  constructed  by   driving  posts  into    the  ground, 
and   closely    covering   them   with   hides.     With   the 
arrival  of  night,  the  propitious   time  for  consulting 
their  oracle,  all  the  warriors  assembled  in  the  spa- 
cious wigwam,  half  lighted   by   the   lurid   glare   of 
fires,  and  waited,  in  suspense  and  awe,  the  issue  of 


//; 


:*■'■'!! 


'■■5'Rt--' 


I  I 


'^ 


452    BBADSTBEETS  ABHT  ON  THE  LAKES.  (CHikr.  XX Vl 

the  invocation.  The  medicine  man,  or  magician, 
stripped  ahnost  naked,  now  entered  the  central  tab. 
emaclc,  which  was  barely  large  enough  to  receive 
him,  and  carefully  closed  the  aperture.  At  once  the 
whole  structure  began  to  shake  with  a  violence 
which  threatened  its  demolition,  and  a  confusion  of 
horrible  sounds,  shrieks,  howls,  yells,  and  moans  of 
anguish,  mingled  with  articulate  words,  sounded  in 
hideous  discord  from  within.  This  outrageous  clamor, 
which  announced  to  the  horror-stricken  spectators 
the  presence  of  a  host  of  evil  spirits,  ceased  as  sud* 
denly  as  it  had  begun.  A  low,  feeble  sound,  like 
the  whine  of  a  yoimg  puppy,  was  next  heard  within 
the  recess;  upon  which  the  warriors  raised  a  cry  of 
joy,  and  hailed  it  as  the  voice  of  the  Great  Turtle 
—  the  spirit  who  never  lied.  The  magician  soon 
annoimced  that  the  spirit  was  ready  to  answer  any 
question  which  might  be  proposed.  On  this,  the 
chief  warrior  stepped  forward,  and,  having  propitiated 
the  Great  Turtle  by  a  present  of  tobacco  thrust 
through  a  small  hole  in  the  tabernacle,  inquired  if 
the  English  were  in  reality  preparing  to  attack  the 
Indians,  and  if  the  troops  were  already  come  to 
Niagara.  Once  more  the  tabernacle  was  violently 
shaken,  a  loud  yell  was  heard,  and  it  was  apparent 
to  all  that  the  spirit  was  gone.  A  pause  of  anxious 
expectation  ensued,  when,  after  the  lapse  of  a  quarter 
of  an  hour,  the  weak,  puppy-like  voice  of  the  Great 
Turtle  was  again  heard  addressing  the  magician  in 
a  language  unknown  to  the  auditors.  When  the 
spirit  ceased  speaking,  the  magician  interpreted  his 
words.  During  the  short  interval  of  his  departure, 
he  had  crossed  Lake  Huron,  visited  Niagara,  and 
descended    the    St.    Lawrence    to    Montreal.      Few 


KE8.    [Chaf.  XXVL 

or    magician, 
he  central   tab- 
►ugh  to   receive 
i.    At  once  the 
ith    a    violence 
a  confusion  of 
and  moans  of 
rds,  sounded  in 
trageous  clamor, 
Lcken   spectators 
ceased  as  sud* 
Me  sound,  like 
;xt  heard  within 
raised  a  cry  of 
he  Great  Turtle 
;  magician  soon 
■  to  answer  any 
I      On    this,  the 
aving  propitiated 
tobacco   thrust 
acle,  inquired  if 
ig  to  attack  the 
Iready    come  to 
e  was  violently 
it  was  apparent 
pause  of  anxious 
pse  of  a  quarter 
ice  of  the  Great 
the  magician  in 
ors.     When  the 
interpreted  his 
f  his  departure, 
d   Niagara,   and 
Montreal.      Few 


CoAP.  XXVL] 


INDIAN  ORACLE. 


453 


soldiers  had  as  yet  reached  Niagara ;  but  as  he 
flew  down  the  St.  Lawrence,  he  had  seen  the  wator 
covered  with  boats,  all  filled  with  English  warriors, 
coming  to  make  war  on  the  Indians.  Having  ob- 
tained this  answer  to  his  first  question,  the  chief 
ventured  to  propose  another,  and  inquired  if  he  and 
his  people,  should  they  accept  the  invitation  of  Sir 
William  Johnson,  would  be  well  received  at  Niagara. 
The  answer  was  most  satisfactory.  "Sir  William 
Johnson,"  said  the  spirit,  "  will  fill  your  canoes  with 
presents;  with  blankets,  kettles,  guns,  gunpowder 
and  shot,  and  large  barrels  of  rum,  such  as  the 
stoutest  of  the  Indians  will  not  be  able  to  lift ;  and 
every  man  will  return  in  safety  to  his  family."  This 
grateful  response  produced  a  general  outburst  nf  ac- 
clamations; and  with  cries  of  joy,  many  voices  were 
heard  to  exclaim,  "I  will  go  too!  I  will  go  tool"' 
They  set  out,  accordingly,  for  Niagara ;  and  thither 
also  numerous  bands  of  warriors  were  tending,  urged 
by  similar  messages,  and  encouraged,  it  may  be,  by 
similar  responses  of  their  oracles.  Crossing  fresh- 
water oceans  in  their  birch  canoes,  and  threading  the 
devious  windings  of  solitary  streams,  they  came  flock- 
ing  to   the   common   centre   of   attraction.     Such  a 


1  Henry,  Travels  and  Adventures, 
171. 

The  method  of  invoking  the  spirits, 
described  above,  is  a  favorite  species 
of  imposture  among  the  medicine 
men  of  most  Algonquin  tribes,  and 
had  been  observed  and  described  a 
century  and  a  half  before  the  period 
of  this  history.  Champlain,  the  found- 
er of  Canada,  witnessed  one  of  these 
ceremonies ;  and  the  Jesuit  Le  Jeune 
gives  an  account  of  a  sorcerer,  who, 
having  invoked  a  spirit  in  this  man- 
ner, treacherously  killed  him  with  a 
hatchet,  the  mysterious  visitant  hav- 


ing assumed  a  visible  and  tangible 
form,  which  exposed  tiim  to  the  inci- 
dents of  mortality.  During  these  in- 
vocations, the  lodge  or  tabernacle 
was  always  observed  to  shake  vio- 
lently to  and  fro,  in  a  manner  so 
remarkable  as  exceedingly  to  perplex 
the  observers.  The  variety  of  dis- 
cordant sounds,  uttered  by  the  medi- 
cine man,  need  not  surprise  us  more 
than  those  accurate  imitations  of  the 
cries  of  various  animals,  to  which  In- 
dian hunters  are  accustomed  to  train 
their  strong  and  flexible  voices. 


ft 


■^'  H 


454 


BRADSTUi:ET'S  army  on  the  LAICES.    [Chap.XXVI, 


\t- 


concourse  of  savages  has  seldom  been  seen  in  America. 
Menomonies,  Ottawas,  Ojibwas,  Mississaiigas,  from  the 
north,  Caughnawagas  from  Canada,  even  Wyandots 
from  Detroit,  together  with  a  host  of  Iroquois,  were 
congregated  round  Fort  Niagara  to  the  number  of 
more  than  two  thousand  warriors,  many  of  whom  had 
brought  with  them  their  women  and  children.^    Even 


1  MS.  Johnson  Papers. 

The  following  extract  from  Henry's 
Travels  will  exhibit  the  feelings  with 
which  the  Indians  came  to  the  con- 
ference at  Niagara,  besides  illus- 
trating a  curious  feature  of  their 
superstitions.  Many  tribes,  including 
some  widely  differing  in  language 
and  habits,  regard  the  rattlesnake 
witli  superstitious  veneration,  looking 
upon  him  either  as  a  manitou,  or 
spirit,  or  as  a  creature  endowed  witli 
mystic  powers  and  attributes,  giving 
him  an  influence  over  the  fortunes 
of  mankind.  Henry  accompanied 
his  Indian  companions  to  Niagara, 
and,  on  the  way,  he  chanced  to  dis- 
cover one  of  these  snakes  near  their 
encampment 

"The  reptile  was  coiled,  and  its 
head  raised  considerably  above  its 
body.  Had  I  advanced  another  step 
before  my  discovery,  I  must  have 
trodden  upon  it. 

"  I  no  sooner  saw  the  snake,  tlian 
I  hastened  to  the  canoe,  in  order  to 
procure  my  gun;  but  the  Indians, 
observing  what  I  was  doing,  inquired 
the  occasion,  and,  being  informed, 
begged  me  to  desist  At  tiie  same 
time,  they  followed  me  to  the  spot, 
witli  their  pipes  and  tobacco-pouches 
in  their  hands.  On  returning,  I  found 
the  snake  still  coiled. 

"  Tlio  Indians,  on  their  part,  sur- 
rounded it,  all  addressing  it  by  turns, 
and  calling  it  their  fp^andfather,  but 
yet  keeping  at  some  distance.  Dur- 
ing tliis  part  of  the  ceremony,  they 
filled  their  pipes ;  and  now  each  blew 
the  smoke  toward  the  snake,  who,  as 
it  ap{)cared  to  me,  really  received  it 
witii  pioaaurc.    In  u  word,  after  re- 


maining coiled,  and  receiving  in- 
cense, for  the  space  of  half  an  hour, 
it  stretclied  itself  along  the  groiinil' 
in  visible  good  hunjor.  Its  length 
was  between  four  and  five  feet  lluv- 
ing  remained  outstretched  for  some 
time,  at  last  it  moved  slowly  away, 
the  Indians  following  it,  and  still  ad- 
dressing it  by  the  title  of  grandfather, 
beseeching  it  to  take  care  of  Uicir 
families  during  their  absence,  and  to 
be  pleased  to  open  the  heart  of  Sir 
William  Johnson,  so  that  he  might 
show  them  charity,  and  fill  their  cano« 
with  rum. 

"One  of  the  chiefs  added  a  pe- 
tition, tliat  the  snake  would  take  no 
notice  of  the  insult  which  had  been 
offered  him  by  the  Englishman,  who 
wouhl  even  have  put  liim  to  death, 
but  for  the  interference  of  the  In- 
dians, to  whom  it  was  hoped  he  would 
impute  no  pnrt  of  tlie  offence.  They 
further  requested,  tliat  he  would  re- 
main, and  not  return  among  tlie  Eng- 
lish ;  that  is,  go  eastward. 

"  After  the  rattlesnake  was  gone, 
I  learned  that  this  was  the  first  time 
that  an  individual  of  the  species  had 
been  seen  so  far  to  the  northward  and 
westward  of  the  River  Dcs  P'rancais ; 
a  circumstance,  moreover,  from  which 
my  companions  were  disposed  to  in- 
fer, that  tliis  mantto  had  como,  or  been 
sent,  on  purpose  to  meet  tlicm ;  that 
his  errand  had  been  no  oUicr  than  to 
stop  them  on  their  way;  and  tiiat 
consequently  it  would  be  most  ad- 
visable to  return  to  the  point  of  de- 
parture. I  was  so  fortunate,  liowever, 
as  to  prevail  with  them  to  embark; 
and  at  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  wc 
again  encamped. 


LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI    I  Chap.  XXVI.] 


INDIANS  AT  NIAGARA. 


['Ay' ' 


465 


the  Sues,  the  Foxes,  and  the  Wmnebagoes  had  sent 
their  deputies;  and  the  Osages,  a  tribe  beyond  the 
Mississippi,  had  thek  representative  in  this  general 
meeting,    "i-c^i.  ',  ■ '!r'^     •      m-,   ...;/:1  >-::iv .  ri-;   i.w;?,>^»;tjt 

Though  the  assembled  multitude  consisted,  for  the 
most  part,  of  the  more  pacific  members  of  the  tribes 
represented,  yet  their  friendly  disposition  was  by  no 
means  certain.  Several  straggling  soldiers  were  shot 
at  in  the  neighborhood,  and  it  soon  became  apparent 
that  the  utmost  precaution  must  be  taken  to  avert 
a  rupture.  The  troops  were  kept  always  on  their 
guard,  while  the  black  muzzles  of  the  cannon,  thrust 
forth  from  the  bastions  of  the  fort,  struck  a  whole- 
some awe  into  t\c  savage  throng  below. 

Although  so  many  had  attended  the  meeting,  there 
were  still  numerous  tribes,  and  portions  of  tribes,  who 
maintained   a  rancorous,   unwavering  hostility.     The 


"  Early  the  next  morning  we  pro- 
ceeded. We  had  a  serene  sky  and 
very  little  wind,  and  the  Indians  there- 
fore determined  on  steering  across 
the  lake,  to  an  island  which  just  ap- 
peared in  the  horizon ;  saving,  by  this 
course,  a  distance  of  thirty  miles, 
which  would  be  lost  in  keeping  the 
shore.  At  nine  o'clock  A.  M.  we  had 
a  light  breeze,  to  enjoy  the  benefit 
of  which  we  hoisted  sail.  Soon  after, 
the  wind  increased,  and  the  Indians, 
beginning  to  be  alarmed,  frequently 
called  on  the  rattlesnake  to  come  to 
their  assistance.  By  degrees  the 
waves  grew  high;  and  at  eleven 
o'clock  it  blew  a  hurricane,  and  we 
expected  every  moment  to  be  swal- 
lowed up.  From  prayers,  the  Indians 
now  proceeded  to  sacrifices,  botli 
alike  otTered  to  tlie  god-rattlesnake, 
or  mamto-kinibic.  One  of  the  chiefs 
took  a  dog,  and  after  tying  its  fore 
legs  together,  threw  it  overboard,  at 
the  same  time  calling  on  the  snake 
io  preserve  us  from  ociiig  drowned, 


and  desiring  him  to  satisfy  his  hunger 
with  the  carnass  of  the  dog.  The 
snake  was  unpropitious,  and  tiie  wind 
increased.  Another  chief  sacrificed 
another  dog,  with  the  addition  of 
some  tobacco.  In  the  prayer  which 
accompanied  these  gifts,  he  besought 
the  snake,  as  before,  not  to  avenge 
upon  the  Indians  the  insult  which  no 
had  received  from  myself,  in  the  con- 
ception of  a  design  to  put  him  to 
death.  He  assured  the  snake  that  I 
was  absolutely  an  Englishman,  and 
of  kin  neither  to  him  nor  to  them. 

"  At  the  conclusion  of  this  speech, 
an  Indian,  who  sat  near  me,  observed, 
that  if  we  were  drowned  it  would  b6 
for  my  fault  alone,  and  that  I  ought 
myself  to  be  sacrificed,  to  appease 
the  angry  manito ;  nor  was  I  without 
apprehensions,  that  in  case  of  ex- 
tremity, this  would  be  my  fate ;  but, 
happily  for  me,  the  storm  at  length 
abated,  and  we  reached  the  island 
safely." — Henry,  T^auels,  175.     * 


r 

llttr 

1: 

1. 

1 

1, 
1 

■■'  n 


'.  I 


456 


BBADSTREETS  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


fS 


Delawares    and    Shawanoes,   however,   against  whom 
Bouquet,  with  the  army  of  the   south,  was  then  in 
the  act  of  advancing,  sent  a  message  to  the  effect, 
that,  though  they  had  no  fear  of  the  English,  though 
they  regarded  them  as  old  women,  and  held  them  in 
contempt,   yet,  out  of  pity  for   their   sufferings,  they 
were  willing  to  treat  of  peace.     To  this  haughty  mis- 
sive Johnson  made  no  answer;  and,  indeed,  those  who 
sent  it  were,  at  this  very  time,  renewing  the  bloody 
work  of  the  previous  year  along  the  bordero  of  Penn- 
sylvania and  Virginia.     The   Senecas,  that  numerous 
and  warlike  people,  to  whose  savage   enmity  were  to 
be  ascribed  the  massacre  at  the   Devil's  Hole,  and 
other  disasters  of  the  last  summer,  had  recently  made 
a  preliminary  treaty  with   Sir  William  Johnson,  and 
at   the  same   time  pledged  themselves   to  appear  at 
Niagara  to  ratify  and  complete  it.     They  broke  their 
promise,   and  it  soon  became   known   that   they  had 
leagued  themselves  with  a  large  band  of  hostile  Del- 
awares, who  had  visited  their  country.     Upon  this,  a 
messenger  was  sent  to  them,  threatening  that,  unless 
they  instantly  came   to   Niagara,   the   English  would 
march    upon    them   and    bum    their   villages.     The 
menace  had  full  effect,  and  a  large  body  of  these  for- 
midable   warriors    appeared    at    the    English    camp, 
bringing  fourteen  prisoners,  besides  several  deserters 
and  runaway  slaves.     A  peace  was  concluded,  on  con- 
dition that  they  should  never  again  attack  the  Eng- 
lish, and  that  they  should  cede  to  the  British  croM 
a  strip  of  land,  between  the  Lakes  Erie  and  Ontario, 
four  miles  in  width,  on  either  side  of  the  River,  or 
Strait,  of  Niagara.*    A  treaty  was  next  made  with  a 


'  Articlfis  of  Peace  concluded  with  the  Senecas,  at  Fort  Niagara,  July 
iS^  1764,  Ma. 


LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.]         OTTAWAS  AND  MENOMONIES. 


457 


cas,  at  Fort  Niagara,  July 


d  tation  of  Wyandots  from  Detroit,  on  condition 
of  tiie  delivery  of  prisoners,  and  the  preservation  of 
friendship  for  the  future.  h]:iui.^-'-  iii.  i<  ii^> 

Councils  were  next  held,  in  turn,  with  each  of 
the  various  tribes  assembled  round  the  fort,  some  of 
whom  craved  forgiveness  for  the  hostile  acts  they 
had  committed,  and  deprecated  the  vengeance  of  the 
English;  while  others  alleged  their  innocence,  urged 
their  extreme  wants  and  necessities,  and  begged  that 
EngUsh  traders  might  once  more  be  allowed  to  visit 
them.  The  council-room  in  the  fort  was  crowded 
from  morning  till  night;  and  the  wearisome  formali- 
ties of  such  occasions,  the  speeches  made  and  replied 
to,  and  the  final  shaking  of  hands,  smoking  of  pipes, 
and  serving  out  of  whiskey,  engrossed  the  time  of 
the  superintendent  for  many  successive  days. 

Among  the  Indians  present  were  a  band  of  Otta- 
was  from  Michillimackinac,  and  remoter  settlements, 
beyond  Lake  Michigan,  and  a  band  of  Menomonies 
from  Green  Bay.  The  former,  it  will  be  remembered, 
had  done  good  service  to  the  English,  by  rescuing 
the  survivors  of  the  garrison  of  Michillimackinac 
from  the  clutches  of  the  Ojibwas;  and  the  latter  had 
deserved  no  less  at  their  hands,  by  the  protection 
they  had  extended  to  Lieutenant  Gorell,  and  the  gar- 
rison at  Green  Ba^.  Conscious  of  their  merits,  they 
had  come  to  Niagara  in  full  confidence  of  a  favorable 
reception.  Nor  were  they  disappointed;  for  Johnson 
met  them  with  a  cordial  welcome,  and  greeted  them 
as  friends  and  brothers.  They,  on  their  part,  were 
not  wanting  in  expressions  of  pleasure;  and  one  of 
their  orators  exclaimed,  in  the  figurative  language  of 
his  people,   "When   our  brother   came   to   meet   us, 

58  MM 


v.i; '  f:  i 


458 


BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


I        i 


\^, 


I  ) 


the  storms  ceased,  the  lake  became  smooth,  and  the 
whole  face  of  nature  was  changed." 

They  disowned  all  connection  or  privity  with  the  de- 
signs of  Pontiac.  "  Brother,"  said  one  of  the  Ottawa 
chiefs,  "  you  must  not  imagine  I  am  acquainted  with 
the  cause  of  the  war.  I  only  heard  a  little  bird 
whistle  an  account  of  it,  and,  on  going  to  Michilli- 
mackinac,  I  found  your  people  killed;  upon  which  I 
sent  our  priest  to  inquire  into  the  matter.  On  the 
priest's  return,  he  brought  me  no  favorable  account, 
but  a  war-hatchet  from  Pontiac,  which  I  scarcely 
looked  on,  and  immediately  threw  away." 
!>  Another  of  the  Ottawas,  a  chief  of  the  remoter 
band  of  Lake  Michigan,  spoke  to  a  similar  effect,  as 
follows:  "We  are  not  of  the  same  people  as  those 
residing  about  Michillimackinac  j  we  only  heard  at  a 
distance  that  the  enemy  were  killing  your  soldiers, 
on  which  we  covered  our  heads,  and  I  resolved  not 
to  suffer  my  people  to  engage  in  the  war.  I  gath- 
ered them  together,  and  made  them  sit  still.  In  the 
spring,  on  uncovering  my  head,  I  perceived  that  they 
had  again  begun  a  war,  and  that  the  sky  wp.s  all 
cloudy  in  that  quarter." 

''  The  superintendent  thanked  them  for  their  fidelity 
to  the  English,  reminded  them  that  their  true  inter- 
est lay  in  the  preservation  of  peace,  and  concluded 
with  a  gift  of  food  and  clothing,  and  a  permission, 
denied  to  all  the  rest,  to  open  a  traffic  with  the  tra- 
ders, who  had  already  begun  to  assemble  at  the  fort. 
"  And  now,  my  brother,"  said  a  warrior,  as  the  coun- 
cil was  about  to  break  up,  "we  beg  that  you  will 
tell  us  where  we  can  find  some  rum  to  comfort  us, 
for  it  is  long  since  we  have  tasted  any,  and  we  are 


ti' 


CuAP.  XXVI.] 


HE  LEAVES  NIAGABA. 


459 


very  thirsty."  This  honest  request  was  not  re- 
fused. The  liquor  was  distributed,  and  a  more 
copious  supply  promised  for  the  future;  upon  which 
the  deputation  departed,  and  repaired  to  their  en- 
campment, much  pleased  with  their  reception.^ 

Throughout  these  conferences,  one  point  of  policy 
was  constantly  adhered  to.  No  general  council  was 
held.  Separate  treaties  were  made  with  each  individ- 
ual band,  in  order  to  promote  their  mutual  jealousies 
and  rivalries,  and  discourage  the  feeling  of  union, 
and  of  a  common  cause  among  the  widely-scattered 
tribes.  Johnson  at  length  completed  his  task,  and, 
on  the  sixth  of  August,  set  sail  for  Oswego.  The 
march  of  the  army  had  hitherto  been  delayed  by 
rumors  of  hostile  designs  on  the  part  of  the  In- 
dians, who,  it  was  said,  had  formed  a  scheme  for 
attacking  Fort  Niagara,  as  soon  as  the  troops  should 
have  left  the  ground.  Now,  however,  when  the  con- 
course was  melting  away,  and  the  tribes  departing 
for  their  distant  homes,  it  was  thought  that  the 
danger  was  past,  and  that  the  army  might  safely 
resimie  its  progress.  They  advanced,  accordingly,  to 
Fort  Schlosser,  above  the  cataract,  whither  their 
boats  and  bateaux  had  been  sent  before  them,  craned 
up  the  rocks  at  Lewiston,  and  dragged  by  oxen  over 
the  rough  portage  road.  The  troops  had  been  joined 
by  three  hundred  friendly  Indians,  and  an  equal 
number  of  Canadians.  The  appearance  of  the  latter 
in  arms  would,  it  was  thought,  have  great  effect  on 
the  minds   of   the    enem' ,  who   had  always   looked 


1  MS.  Johnson  Papers.    MS.  Min-  20, 1764.    The  extracts  given  above 

utea  of  Conference  with  the  chiefs  are  copied  verbatim  from  the  original 

and  warriors  of  the  Ottawas    and  record. 
Menomonies  at  Fort  Niagara,  July 


!     '.'iin 


4)- 


:.e. 


I  i 


\s 


460 


BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


upon  them  as  friends  and  supporters.  Of  the  In- 
dian allies,  the  greater  part  were  Iroquois,  and  the 
remainder,  ahout  a  hundred  in  number,  Ojibwas  and 
Mississaugas ;  the  former  being  the  same  who  had 
recently  arrived  from  the  Sault  Ste.  Marie,  bringing 
with  them  their  prisoner,  Alexander  Henry.  Henry 
was  easily  persuaded  to  accompany  the  expedition, 
and  the  command  of  the  Ojibwas  and  Mississaugas 
was  assigned  to  him  —  "To  me,"  writes  the  ad- 
venturous trader,  "whose  best  hope  it  had  lately- 
been  to  live  by  their  forbearance."  His  long-con- 
tinued sufferings  and  dangers  hardly  deserved  to  be 
rewarded  by  so   great   a  misfortune  as  that  of  com- 

I  i  manding   a   body  of  Indian  warriors;   an   evil  from 

which,  however,  he  was  soon  to  bo  relieved.  The 
army  had  hardly  begun  its  march,  when  nearly  all 
his  followers  ran  off,  judging  it  wiser  to  return 
home  with  the  arms  and  clothing  given  them  for 
the  expedition  than  to  make  war  against  their  own 
'  countrymen  and  relatives.  Fourteen  warriors  still 
remained;  but  on  the  following  night,  when  the 
array  lay  at  Fort  Schlosser,  having  contrived  by 
some  means  to  obtain  liquor,  they  created  such  a 
commotion  in  the  camp  by  yelling  and  firing  their 
guns  as  to  excite  the  utmost  indignation  of  the 
commander.  They  received  from  him,  in  conse- 
quence, a  reproof  so  harsh  and  ill  judged,  that  most 

?  of  them  went  home  in  disgust,  and  Henry  found  his 

Indian  battalion  suddenly  dwindled  to  four  or  five 
,  vagabond  hunters.*  A  large  number  of  Iroquois  still 
followed  the  army,  the  strength  of  which,  farther 
increased  by  a  reenforcement  of  Highlanders,  was 
now  very  considerable.  -    f      . 

»  Henry,  Travels,  1B3.  " 


A.KES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.] 


PRETENDED  EMBASSY. 


461 


The  troops  left  Fort  Schlosser  on  the  eighth. 
Their  boats  and  bateaux  pushed  out  into  the 
Niagara,  whose  expanded  waters  reposed  in  a 
serenity  soon  to  be  exchanged  for  the  wild  roar 
and  tumultuous  struggle  of  the  rapids  and  the  cat- 
aract. They  coasted  along  the  southern  shore  of 
Lake  Erie  until  the  twelfth,  when,  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  PresquTsle,  they  were  overtaken  by  a 
storm  of  rain,  which  forced  them  to  drag  their  boats 
on  shore,  and  pitch  their  tents  in  the  dripping 
forest.  Before  the  day  closed,  word  was  brought 
that  strange  Indians  were  near  the  camp.  They 
soon  made  their  appearance,  proclaiming  themselves 
to  be  chiefs  and  deputies  of  the  Delawares  and 
Shawanoes,  empowered  to  beg  for  peace  in  the  name 
of  their  respective  tribes.  Various  opinions  were 
entertained  of  the  visitors.  The  Indian  allies  wished 
to  kill  them,  and  many  of  the  officers  believed  them 
to  be  spies.  There  was  no  proof  of  their  pretended 
character  of  deputies,  and  for  all  that  appeared  to 
the  contrary,  they  might  be  a  mere  straggling  party 
of  warriors.  Their  professions  of  an  earnest  desire 
for  peace  were  contradicted  by  the  fact  that  they 
brought  with  them  but  one  small  belt  of  wampum, 
a  pledge  no  less  indispensable  in  a  treaty  with  these 
tribes  than  seals  and  signatures  in  a  convention  of 
European  sovereigns.*  Bradstreet  knew,  or  ought  to 
have  known,  the  character  of  the  treacherous  enemy 
with   whom    he   had   to    deal.     He   knew   that    the 


'*fH».'''^l 


J  Eveiy  article  in  a  treaty  must  be 
confinnea  b^  a  belt  of  wampum; 
otherwise  it  is  void.  Mante,  the  his- 
torian of  the  French  war,  asserts 
that  they  brought  four  belts.  But 
this  is  contradicted  in  contemporary 
letters,  includiner  several  of  General 


Gage  and  Sir  William  Johnson. 
Mante  accompanied  Bradstreet's  ex- 
pedition with  the  rank  of  major,  and 
he  is  a  zealous  advocate  of  his  com- 
mander, whom  he  seeks  to  defend,  at 
the  expense  both  of  Colonel  Bouquet 
and  General  Gage. 

MM* 


\  i 


,?■/-■ 


462 


BKADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


■ii' 


A 


Shawanoes  and  Delawares  had  shown,  throughout 
the  war,  a  ferocious  and  relentless  hostility;  that 
they  had  sent  an  insolent  message  to  Niagara;  and 
finally,  that  in  his  own  instructions  he  was  enjoined 
to  deal  sternly  with  them,  and  not  he  duped  hy  pre- 
tended overtures.  Yet,  in  spite  of  the  suspicious 
character  of  the  self-styled  deputies,  in  spite  of  the 
sullen  wrath  of  his  Indian  allies  and  the  murmured 
dissent  of  his  officers,  he  listened  to  their  proposals, 
and  entered  into  a  preliminary  treaty.  He  pledged 
himself  to  refrain  from  attacking  the  Delawares  and 
Shawanoes,  on  condition  that  within  twenty-five  days 
the  deputies  should  again  meet  him  at  Sandusky,  in 
order  to  yield  up  their  prisoners,  and  conclude  a 
definitive  treaty  of  peace.^  It  afterwards  appeared  — 
and  this,  indeed,  might  have  heen  suspected  at  the 
time  —  that  the  sole  object  of  the  overtures  was  to 
retard  the  action  of  the  aimy  until  the  season 
should  be  too  far  advanced  to  prosecute  the  cam- 
paign. At  this  very  moment,  the  Delaware  and 
Shawanoe  war-parties  were  murdering  and  scalping 
along  the  frontiers ;  and  the  work  of  havoc  con- 
tinued for  weeks,  until  it  was  checked  at  length  by 
the  operations  of  Colonel  Bouquet. 

Bradstreet  was  not  satisfied  with  the  promise  he 
had  made  to  abandon  his  own  hostile  designs.  He 
consummated  his  folly  and  presumption  by  despatch- 
ing a  messenger  to  his  superior  officer.  Colonel  Boii- 
(juet,  informing  him  that  the  Delawares  and  Shaw- 
anoes had  been  reduced  to  submission  without  his 
aid,  and  that  he  might  withdraw  his  troops,  as  there 


1    Preliminary     treaty     between    concluded  at  L'Ance  aux  Feuilles,  on 
Colonel  Bradstreet  and  the  deputies    Lake  Erie,  August  12, 1764,  MS. 
of  the  Delawares  and  Shawanoes- 


A.KES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.]      GAGE  CENSURES  HIS  CONDUCT. 


463 


was  no  need  of  his  advancing  farther.  Bouquet, 
astonished  and  indignant,  paid  no  attention  to  this 
communication,  but  pursued  his  march  as  before.* 

The  course  pursued  by  Bradstreet  in  this  affair  — 
a  course  which  can  only  be  ascribed  to  the  vain 
ambition  of  finishing  the  war  without  the  aid  of 
others  —  drew  upon  him  the  SQvere  censures  of  the 
commander-in-chief,  who,  on  hearing  of  the  treaty, 
at  once  annulled  it."  Bradstreet  has  been  accused 
of  having  exceeded  his  orders  in  promising  to  con- 
clude a  definitive  treaty  with  the  Indians,  a  power 
which  was  vested  in  Sir  William  Johnson  alone; 
but  as  upon  this  point  his  instructions  were  not 
explicit,  he  may  be  spared  the  full  weight  of  this 
additional  charge.^ 


'/  / 


1  MS.  Letter — Bouquet  to  Gage, 
Sept  3. 

9  Ebctract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Gage  to  Bradstreet,  Sept.  2. 

"  I  again  repeat  that  I  annul  and 
disavow  the  peace  you  have  made." 

The  followmg  extracts  will  express 
the  opinions  of  Gage  with  respect  to 
this  affair. 

MS.  Letter  —  Gage  to  Bradstreet, 
Oct  15. 

"They  have  negotiated  with  you 
on  Lake  Erie,  and  cut  our  throats 
upon  the  frontiers.  With  your  let- 
ters of  peace  I  received  others,  giv- 
ing accounts  of  murders,  and  these 
acts  continue  to  this  time.  Had  you 
only  consulted  Colonel  Bouquet,  be- 
fore you  agreed  upon  any  thing  with 
themi  (a  deference  he  was  certainly 
entitled  to,  instead  of  an  order  to 
stop  his  march,)  you  would  have  been 
acquainted  with  the  treachety  of 
those  people,  and  not  have  sunered 
yourself  to  be  thus  deceived,  and 
you  would  have  saved  both  Colonel 
Bouquet  and  myself  from  the  dilem- 
ma you  brought  us  into.  You  con- 
cluded a  peace  with  people  who  were 
daily  murdering  us." 


MS.  Letter  —  Gage  to  Johnson, 
Sept.  4. 

"You  will  have  received  my  let- 
ter of  the  2d  inst,  enclosing  you 
the  unaccountable  treaty  betwixt 
Colonel  Bradstreet  and  the  Shawa- 
nese,  Delawares,  &c.  On  considera- 
tion of  the  treaty,  it  does  not  appear 
to  me  that  the  ten  Indians  therein 
mentioned  were  sent  on  an  errand 
of  peace.  If  they  had,  would  they 
not  have  been  at  Niagara .'  or  would 
the  insolent  and  audacious  message 
have  been  sent  there  in  the  lieu  of 
offers  of  peace?  Would  not  they 
have  been  better  provided  witn 
belts  on  such  an  occasion.'  They 
give    only    one    string    of    wam- 

Eum.  You  will  know  this  better, 
ut  it  appears  strange  to  me.  They 
certainly  came  to  watch  the  motions 
of  the  troops." 

3  MS.  Letter  —  Gage  to  Brad- 
street,   Sept  2. 

Bradstreet's  instructions  directed 
him  to  offer  peace  to  such  tribes  as 
should  make  their  submission.  "  To 
offer  peace"  writes  Gage,  "I  think 
can  never  be  construed  a  power  to 
condvde  and  dictate  the  articles  of 


I 


»■; 


it 


I  f 


464  BBADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chat.  XXVI. 

Having,  as  he  thought,  accomplished  not  only  a 
great  part  of  his  own  task,  but  also  the  whole  of 
that  which  had  been  assigned  to  Colonel  Bouquet, 
Bradstreet  resumed  his  progress  westward,  and  in  a 
few  days  reached  Sandusky.  He  had  been  ordered 
to  attack  the  Wyandots,  Ottawas,  and  Miamis,  dwell- 
ing  near  this  place;  but  at  his  approach,  these  In* 
dians,  hastening  to  avert  the  danger,  sent  a  deputa- 
tion to  meet  him,  promising  that,  if  he  would  refrain 
from  attacking  them,  they  would  follow  him  to 
Detroit,  and  there  conclude  a  treaty.  Bradstreet 
thought  proper  to  trust  this  slippery  promise,  though, 
with  little  loss  of  time,  he  might  have  reduced  them, 
on  the  spot,  to  a  much  more  effectual  submission. 
He  now  bent  his  course  for  Detroit^  leaving  the  In- 
dians of  Sandusky  much  delighted,  and  probably  no 
less  surprised,  at  the  success  of  their  embassy.  Be- 
fore his  departure,  however,  he  despatched  Captain 
Morris,  with  several  Canadians  and  friendly  Indians, 
to  the  Illinois,  in  order  to  persuade  the  savages  of 
that  region  to  treat  of  peace  with  the  English. 
The  measure  was  in  a  high  degree  ill  advised  and 
rash,  promising  but  doubtful  advantage,  and  exposing 
the  life  of  a  valuable  officer  to  imminent  risk.  The 
sequel  of  Morris's  adventure  will  soon  appear. 

The  English  boats  now  entered  the  mouth  of  the 
Detroit,  and  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  August  came 
within  sight  of  the  fort  and  adjacent  settlements. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  "Wyandot  village  on  the 
right,  who,  it  will  be  remembered,  had  recently 
made  a  treaty  of  peace  at  Niagara,  ran  down  to  the 


peace,  and  yon  certainly  know  that  William  Johnson,  his  majesty's  sole 
no  such  power  could  with  propriety  '^^^  '^^  superintendent  for  Indian 
be  lodged  in  any  person  but  m  Sir    anairs." 


KES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.] 


BRADSTREET  AT  DETROIT. 


465 


shore,  shouting,  whooping,  and  firing  their  guns,  —  a 
greeting  more  noisy  than  sincere, — while  the  cannon 
of  the  garrison  echoed  salutation  from  the  opposite 
shove,  and  cheer  on  cheer,  deep  and  heartfelt,  pealed 
welcome  from  the  crowded  ramparts. 

Well  might  Gladwyn's  beleaguered  soldiers  rejoice 
at  the  approaching  succor.  They  had  been  beset  for 
more  than  fifteen  months  by  their  wily  enemy,  and 
though  there  were  times  when  not  an  Indian  could 
be  seen,  yet  woe  to  the  soldier  who  should  wander 
into  the  forest  in  search  of  game,  or  stroll  too  far 
beyond  range  of  the  cannon.  Throughout  the  pre- 
ceding winter,  they  had  been  left  in  comparative 
quiet;  but  with  the  opening  spring,  the  Indians  had 
resumed  their  pertinacious  hostilities;  not,  however, 
with  the  same  activity  and  vigor  as  during  the  pre- 
ceding summer.  The  messages  of  Sir  William  John- 
son, and  the  tidings  of  Bradstreet's  intended  expedi- 
tion, had  had  great  effect  upon  their  minds,  and  some 
of  them  were  inclined  to  sue  for  peace;  but  still  the 
garrison  were  harassed  by  frequent  alarms,  and  days 
and  nights  of  watchfulness  were  their  unvarying  lot. 
Cut  off  for  months  together  from  all  communication 
with  their  race,  pent  up  in  an  irksome  imprisonment, 
ill  supplied  with  provisions,  and  with  clothing  worn 
threadbare,  they  hailed  with  delight  the  prospect  of 
a  return  to  the  world  from  which  they  had  been 
banished  so  long.  The  army  had  no  sooner  landed 
than  the  garrison  was  relieved,  and  fresh  troops  sub- 
stituted in  their  place.  Bradstreet's  next  care  was  to 
inquire  into  the  conduct  of  the  Canadian  inhabitants 
of  Detroit,  and  punish  such  of  them   as  had  given 

aid  to  the   Indians.     A  few  only  were  found  guilty, 

59      --  ;-/■■-;;  -  v-^^^^'^^--^ 


^^^1 

l^v 

^^1  ''^' 

mi:;. 

^^^■~  ^^ 

it^ 

1 

Mil 


466 


BUADSTUEET'8  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chai-.  XXVl. 


c 


the  more  culpable  having  fled  to  the  Illinois  on  the 
approach  of  the  army. 

Tuntiac  too  was  gone.  I'he  great  war-cliief,  his 
vengeance  unslaked,  and  hi  s  purpose  unshaken,  liucl 
retired  before  an  overwhelming  force,  and,  with  the 
IPore  resolute  and  warlike  of  liis  followers,  with- 
drawn  to  the  banks  of  the  Maumec,  whence  he  sent 
a  haughty  defiance  to  the  English  commander.  The 
Indian  villages  near  Detroit  were  half  r»T/ii  ;d  of 
their  inhabitants,  many  of  whom  still  ibJ«.vvta  die 
desperate  fortunes  of  their  indomitable  l.rid'  .  Those 
who  remained  were,  for  the  r;ost  j.-rt,  sincerely  de- 
sirous  of  peace ;  for  the  war  had  iu  volved  them  in 
great  distress,  by  cutting  oft  the  fur-trade,  and  thus 
depriving  them  of  the  supplies  \tliich  habit  had 
made  essential  to  their  support.  They  therefore 
readily  obeyed  the  summons  of  Bradstreet  to  meet 
him  in  council. 

'  The  council  was  held  in  the  open  air,  on  the 
mrrning  of  the  seventh  of  September,  with  all  the 
uccompaniments  of  military  display  which  could 
inspire  awe  and  respect  among  the  assembled  sav- 
ages. The  tribes,  or  rather  fragments  of  tribes,  rep- 
resented at  this  meeting,  were  the  Ottawas,  Ojibwas, 
Pottawattamies,  Miamis,  Sacs,  and  Wyandots.  The 
Indians  of  Sandusky  kept  imperfectly  the  promise 
they  had  made,  the  Wyandots  of  that  place  alone 
sending  a  full  doputation,  while  the  other  tribes 
were  merely  repico.  t^  il  by  the  Ojibwa  .  hief  Was- 
son.  This  man  •  '  -  >  the  piuicipal  chief  of  his 
tribe,  and  the  most  prominent  orator  on  the  present 
occasion,  rose  and  opened  the  council. 

"  My    brother,"    he    said,    addressing    Bradstreet, 


'^'^e  f 


*  •»! 


Chap.  XXVI.] 


TKIIMS   OF  THE  TRKATY. 


467 


"last  yciir  Cod  forsook  us.  God  has  now  opened 
our  eyes,  luid  we  dosirp  to  be  heard.  It  is  Go<l  s 
will  our  heu  i  are  ultend.  It  was  God's  will  you 
had  such  fine  weatlK>r  to  come  to  us.  It  is  (irod's 
will  also  tlicro  should  bo  peace  and  tranquillity 
over  the  face  of  the  earth  and  of  (^if^  waters." 

Having  delivered  this  eloquent  exordium,  Wasson 
frankly  confessed  that  the  tribes  which  he  represented 
were  all  justly  chargeable  with  the  wur,  and  now 
deeply  regretted  their  delinquency.  It  is  common 
with  Indians,  when  accused  of  acts  of  violence,  to  lay 
the  blame  upon  the  unbridled  recklessness  of  their 
young  warriors;  and  this  excuse  is  often  perfectly 
sound  and  valid ;  but  since,  in  the  case  of  a  premed- 
itated and  long-continued  war,  it  was  glaringly  inad- 
missible, they  now  reversed  the  usu  1  course,  and 
made  scapegoats  of  the  old  chiefs  and  warriors,  who, 
as  they  declared,  had  led  the  people  asti  ay  by  sinister 
counsel  and  bad  example.'       ,    '         .  -; 

Bradstreet  would  grant  peace  only  on  condition 
that  they  should  become  subjects  of  the  King  of  Eng- 
land, and  acknowledge  that  he  held  over  their  coun- 
try a  sovereignty  as  ample  and  complete  as  over  any 
other  part  of  his  dominions.  Nothing  cou.d  be  more 
impolitic  and  absurd  than  this  demand.  The  small- 
est attempt  at  an  invasion  of  their  lib(  rties  has 
always  been  regarded  by  the  Indians  with  extreme 
jealousy,  and  a  prominent  cause  of  the  war  \ad  been 
an  undue  assumption  of  authority  on  the  pa.  t  of  the 
English.  This  article  of  the  treaty,  could  its  pui'port 
have  been  fully  understood,  might  have  kindle  I  afresh 
the  quarrel  which  it  sought  to  extinguish;   but  hap- 


t 


1  MS.  Minutes  of  Conference  be-    dians  of  Detroit,  Sept  7, 17*34.    See, 
tween  Colonel  Bradstreet  and  the  In-    alst ,  Mante,  517. 


H4 


I    1 


(    } 


468  BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAIvES.    [CuAr.  XXVI. 

pily  not  a  savage  present  was  able  to  comprehend  it. 
Subjection  and  sovereignty  are  ideas  which  never  en- 
ter into  the  mind  of  an  Indian,  and  therefore  his 
language  has  no  words  to  express  them.  Most  of 
the  western  tribes,  it  is  true,  had  been  accustomed 
to  call  themselves  children  of  the  King  of  France; 
but  the  words  were  a  mere  compliment,  conveying 
no  sense  of  any  political  relation  whatever.  Yet  it 
was  solely  by  means  of  this  hannless  metaphor  that 
the  condition  in  question  could  be  explained  to  the 
assembled  chiefs.  Thus  interpreted,  it  met  with  a 
ready  assent,  since,  in  their  eyes,  it  involved  no  con- 
cession  beyond  a  mere  unmeaning  change  of  forms 
and  words.  They  promised,  in  future,  to  call  the 
English  king  father,  instead  of  brother,  unconscious 
of  any  obligation  which  so  trifling  a  change  could 
impose,  and  mentally  reserving  a  full  right  to  make 
war  on  him  or  his  people,  whenever  it  should  suit 
their  convenience.  When  Bradstreet  returned  from 
his  expedition,  he  boasted  that  he  had  reduced  tlie 
tribes  of  Detroit  to  terms  of  more  complete  submis- 
sion than  any  other  Indians  had  ever  before  yielded; 
but  the  truth  was  soon  detected  and  exposed  by  those 
conversant  with  Indian  affairs.* 

At  this  council,  Bradstreet  was  guilty  of  the  bad 
policy  and  bad  taste  of  speaking  through  the  medium 
of  a  French  interpreter ;  so  that  most  of  his  own 
officers,  as  well  as  the  Iroquois  allies,  who  were 
strangers  to  the  Algonquin  language,  remained  in 
ignorance  of  all  that  passed.  The  latter  were  highly 
indignant,  and  refused  to  become  parties  to  the 
treaty,  or  go  through  the  usual  ceremony  of  shaking 

i 

1  MS.  Letter  — Johnson  to  the  Board  of  Trade,  Oct  30. 


AKES.    [CuAr.XXVI. 


CuAr.  XXVI.] 


EMBASSY  OF  MORRIS. 


469 


hands  with  ^he  chiefs  of  Detroit,  insisting  that  they 
had  not  heard  their  speeches,  and  knew  not  whether 
they  were  friends  or  enemies.  In  another  particular, 
also,  Bradstreet  gave  great  offence.  From  some  un- 
explained impulse  or  motive,  he  cut  to  pieces,  with  a 
hatchet,  a  helt  of  wampum  which  was  ahout  to  be 
used  in  the  council;  and  all  the  Indians  present, 
both  friends  and  enemies,  were  alike  incensed  at  this 
rude  violation  of  the  ancient  pledge  of  faith,  which, 
in  their  eyes,  was  invested  with  something  of  a  sacred 

character.^        a-^     -,_:;;.  ^;-7    .-^-v,  .;;.-.      :.>     .^^  ■■, -t  ,,:>-,..,  i<i;  ,  ^■•^•^_ 

Having  settled  the  affairs  of  Detroit,  Bradstreet 
despatched  Captain  Howard,  with  a  strong  detach- 
ment, to  take  possession  of  Michillimackinac,  which 
had  remained  unoccupied  since  its  capture  on  the 
previous  summer.  Howard  effected  his  object  with- 
out resistance,  and,  at  the  same  time,  sent  parties  of 
troops  to  reoccupy  the  deserted  posts  of  Green  Bay 
and  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  Thus,  after  the  interval  of 
more  than  a  year,  the  flag  of  England  was  again 
displayed  among  the  solitudes  of  the  northern  wil- 
derness.''       -"'''        ;  ^     -    .^V"^--"^--::'^'V'^      .,,hf<-'.    -V  ■■-      ■;-.,,-•';{—: 

While  Bradstreet's  army  lay  encamped  on  the  fields 
near  Detroit,  Captain  Morris,  with  a  few  Iroquois 
and  Canadian  attendants,  was  pursuing  his  adventur- 
ous embassy  to  the  country  of  the  Illinois.  Ascend- 
ing the  Maumee  in  a  canoe,  he  soon  approached  the 
camp  of  Pontiac,  who,  as  we  have  seen,  had  with- 
drawn to  the  banks  of  this  river,  with  his  chosen 
While   yet  at  some  distance,   Morris   and 


•:  -^' 


"Is 


warriors. 


rrede-  Oct  30. 


1  MS.  Remarks  on  tlic  Conduct  of     Sandusky,  published  in  several  nows- 
Colonel   Bradstreet  —  found   among    papers  of  the  day. 
the  Johnson  Papers,  3  MS.  Report  of  Captain  Howard. 

See.  also,  an  extract  of  a  letter  from 

NN 


470 


BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI, 


I  1 


his  party  were  met  by  about  two  hundred  Indians, 
who  treated  him  with  great  violence  and  rudeness, 
while  they  offered  a  friendly  welcome  to  the  Iroquois 
and  Canadians.  Attended  by  this  clamorous  escort, 
they  all  moved  together  towards  the  camp.  At  its 
outskirts  stood  Pontiac  himself.  He  met  the  am- 
bassador with  a  scowling  brow,  and  refused  to  offer 
his  hand.  "The  English  are  liars,"  was  his  first 
fierce  salutation.  He  then  displayed  a  letter  ad- 
dressed to  himself,  and  purporting  to  have  been  writ- 
ten by  the  King  of  France,  containing,  as  Morris 
declares,  the  grossest  calumnies  which  the  most  in- 
genious malice  could  devise,  to  incense  the  Indians 
against  the  English.  The  old  falscLood  was  not  for- 
gotten. "Your  French  father,"  sari  the  writer,  "is 
neither  dead  nor  asleep;  he  ia  already  on  his  way, 
with  sixty  great  ships,  to  revenge  himself  on  the 
•  English,  and  drive  them  out  of  America."  The  letter 
was  written  by  a  French  officer,  or  more  probably  a 
French  fur-trader,  who,  for  his  own  profit,  wished  to 
inflame  the  passions  of  the  Indians,  and  thus  bar  the 
way  against  English  competitors.  If  Bradstreet,  be- 
fore leaving  Sandusky,  had  forced  the  Indians  of  that 
place  to  submission,  he  would  have  inspired  such  an 
awe  and  respect  among  the  tribes  of  the  whole  adja- 
cent region,  that  Morris  might  have  been  assured  of 
safety  and  good  treatment,  even  in  the  camp  of  Pon- 
tiac. As  it  was,  the  knowledge  that  so  many  of  their 
relatives  were  in  the  power  of  the  army  at  Detroit 
restrained  the  Ottawa  warriors  from  personal  violence; 
and,  having  plundered  the  whole  party  of  every  thing 
except  their  arms,  their  clothing,  and  their  canoe, 
they  suffered  them  to  depart. 

Leaving  the  unfriendly  camp,  they  urged  their  way. 


KES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.] 


EMBASSY  OP  MOKIUS. 


471 


urged  their  way, 


with  poles  and  paddles,  against  the  rippling  current 
of  the  Maumee,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  seventh 
day  reached  the  neighborhood  of  Fort  Miami.  This 
post,  captured  during  the  preceding  year,  had  since 
remained  without  a  garrison;  and  its  only  tenants 
were  the  Canadians,  who  had  built  their  houses  within 
its  palisades,  and  a  few  Indians,  who  thought  fit  to 
make  it  their  temporary  abode.  The  meadows  about 
the  fort  were  dotted  with  the  lodges  of  the  Kickar- 
poos,  a  large  band  of  whom  had  recently  arrived; 
but  the  great  Miami  village  was  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  stream,  screened  from  sight  by  the  forest 
which  intervened. 

Morris  brought  his  canoe  to  land  at  a  short  dis-^ 
tance  below  the  fort,  and  while  his  attendants  were 
making  their  way  through  the  belt  of  woods  whicli. 
skirted  the  river,  he  himself  remained  behind  to  com- 
plete some  necessary  arrangements.  It  was  fortunate 
that  he  did  so,  for  his  attendants  had  scarcely  reached' 
the  open  meadow,  which  lay  behind  the  woods,  whett 
they  were  encountered  by  a  mob  of  savages,  armed 
with  spears,  hatchets,  and  bows  and  arrows,  and  benti 
on  killing  the  Englishman.  Being,  for  the  moment, 
unable  to  find  him,  the  chiefs  had  time  to  address 
the  excited  rabble,  and  persuade  them  to  postpone 
their  intended  vengeance.  The  ambassador,  buffeted j 
threatened,  and  insulted,  was  conducted  to  the  fort/ 
where  he  was  ordered  to  remain,  though,  at  the  same 
time,  the  Canadian  inhabitants  were  forbidden  to  ad- 
mit him  into  their  houses.  Morris  soon  discovered' 
that  this  rough  treatment  was,  in  a  great  measure/ 
owing  to  the  influence  of  a  deputation  of  Delaware 
and  Shawanoe  chiefs,  who  had  recently  arrived,  bring- 
ing fourteen  war-belts  of  wampum,  and  exciting  the 


.'a  .  :,■■,■ 


?-»« 
*.i-^' 


r** 


472 


BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    jCnAP.XXVl. 


■ti       I 


Miamis  to  renew  their  hostilities  against  the  common 
enemy.  Thus  it  was  fully  apparent  that  whUe  the 
Delawares  and  Shawanoes  were  sending  one  deputa- 
tion to  treat  of  peace  with  Bradstreet  on  Lake  Erie, 
they  were  sending  another  to  rouse  the  tribes  of  the 
Illinois  to  war.  From  Fort  Miamis,  the  deputation 
had  proceeded  westward,  spreading  the  contagion 
among  all  the  tribes  between  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Ohio,  declaring  that  they  would  never  make  peace 
with  the  English,  but  would  fight  them  as  long  as 
the  sun  should  shine,  and  calling  on  their  brethren 
of  the  Illinois  to  follow  their  example. 

Morris  had  not  remained  long  at  the  fort,  when 
two  Miami  warriors  entered,  who,  seizing  him  by  the 
arms,  and  threatening  him  with  a  raised  tomahawk, 
forced  liim  out  of  tha  gate,  and  led  him  to  the 
bank  of  the  river.  As  they  drew  him  into  the  water, 
the  conviction  flashed  across  his  mind  that  they  in- 
tended  to  drown  him  and  then  take  his  scalp;  but 
he  soon  saw  his  mistake,  for  they  led  him  across  the 
stream,  which  at  this  season  was  fordable,  and  thence 
towards  the  great  Miami  village.  When  they  ap. 
preached  the  lodges,  they  stopped  and  began  to  strip 
him,  but  grew  angry  at  the  difficulty  of  the  task. 
In  rage  and  despair,  he  himself  tore  off  his  uniform. 
The  warriors  bound  his  arms  behind  him  with  his 
own  sash,  and  drove  him  before  them  into  the  vil- 
lage. Instantly,  from  all  the  lodges,  the  savages  ran 
out  to  receive  their  prisoner,  clustering  about  him 
like  a  swarm  of  angry  bees,  and  uttering  their  dis- 
cordant death-yells  —  sounds  compared  to  which  the 
nocturnal  bowlings  of  starved  wolves  are  gentle  and 
melodious.  The  greater  number  were  eager  to  kill 
him;    but  there    was    a   division    of  opinion,   and  a 


!«■ 


liii' 


A.KES.    IChap.XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.] 


EMBASSY  OF  MORRIS. 


473 


clamorous  debate  ensued.     Two  of  his  Canadian  at- 
tendants,   Godefroy   and    St.   Vincent,    had   followed 
him   to   the  village,  and  now  ventured  to  interpose 
with  the  chiefs  in  his  behalf.     Among  the  latter  was 
a  nephew  of  Pontiac,  a  young  man,  who,  though  not 
yet  arrived  at  maturity,  shared  the  bold  spirit  of  his 
heroic  kinsman.     He  harangued  the  tumultuous  crowd, 
declaring  that  he  would  not  see  one  of  the   English 
put  to  death,  when  so  many  of  his  own  relatives  were 
in  their  hands   at  Detroit.     A  Miami  chief,  named 
the  Swan,  also  took  part  with  the  prisoner,  and  cut 
loose  his  bonds;  but  Morris  had  no  sooner  begun  to 
speak  in  his  own  behalf,  than  another  chief,  called 
the  White  Cat,  seized  him,  and  bound  him  fast  by 
the  neck  to   a  post.     Upon  this,   Pontiac's  nephew 
rode   up   on   horseback,   severed   the    cord   with   his 
hatchet,  and  released  the  unfortunate  man.     "I  give 
this  Englishman  his  life,"  exclaimed  the  daring  boy. 
"If  you  want  English  meat,  go  to  Detroit  or  to  the 
lake,  and  you  will  find  enough  of  it.     "What  business 
have  you  with  this  man,  who  has  come  to  speak  with 
us^"     The  current  of  feeling  among  the  throng  now 
began  to  change ;  and,  having  vented  their  hatred  and 
spite  by   a  profusion    of  words    and  blows,  they  at 
length  thrust  the   ambassador  with  violence   out   of 
the   village.     He    succeeded   in   regaining    the    fort, 
although,  on  the  way,  he  was  met  by  one  of  the  In- 
dians, who  beat  his  naked  body  with  a  stick.         *    • 
He  found  the  Canadian  inhabitants  of  the  fort  dis- 
posed  to   befriend  him,  as  far  as   they  could  do   so 
without  danger  to  themselves ;   but  his  situation  was 
still  extremely  critical.     The  two  warriors,  who  had 
led  him    across    the   river,   were    constantly    lurking 
about,  watching  an  opportunity  to  kill  him ;  and  the 

60  NN* 


/ 


%. 


M 


':^^\, 


I  ■' 


'."fm-mi 


t   §' 


474 


BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 


Kickapoos,  whose  lodges  were  pitched  on  the  meadow, 
sent  him  a  message  to  the  effect,  that  if  the  Miamir. 
ilid  not  put  him  to  death,  they  themselves  would  do 
so,  whenever  he  should  pass  their  camp.  He  was 
still  on  the  threshold  of  his  journey,  and  his  final 
point  of  destination  was  several  hundred  miles  dis- 
tant; yet,  with  great  resolution,  he  determined  to 
persevere,  and,  if  possible,  completely  fulfil  his  mis- 
sion. His  Indian  and  Canadian  attendants  used 
every  means  to  dissuade  him,  and  in  the  evening 
held  a  council  with  the  Miami  chiefs,  the  result  of 
which  was  most  discouraging.  Morris  received  mes- 
sage after  message,  threatening  his  life  should  he  per- 
sist in  his  design;  and  word  was  brought  him  that 
several  of  the  Shawanoe  deputies  were  returning  to 
the  fort,  expressly  to  kill  him.  Under  these  circum- 
stances, it  would  have  been  madness  to  persevere ;  and, 
reluctantly  abandoning  his  purpose,  he  retraced  his 
steps  towards  Detroit,  where  he  amved  on  the  seven- 
teenth of  September,  fully  expecting  to  find  Brad- 
street  still  encamped  in  the  neighborhood.  But  that 
agile  commander  had  returned  to  Sandusky,  whither 
Morris,  completely  exhausted  by  hardships  and  suf- 
ferings, was  unable  to  follow  him.  He  hastened, 
however,  to  send  Bradstreet  the  journal  of  his  un- 
fortunate embassy,  accompanied  by  a  letter,  in  which 
he  inveighed,  in  no  very  gentle  terms,  against  the 
authors  of  his  misfortunes.' 


>  MS.  Letter  —  Morris  to  Brad- 
Ktreet,  Sept  18. 

"  The  villains  have  nipped  our  fair- 
eet  hopes  in  the  bud.    I  tremble  for 

iron  at  Sandusky ;  though  I  was  great- 
y  pleased  to  find  you  have  one  of  tlie 
vesscla  with  you,  and  artillery.  I  wish 
the  chiefs  were  assembled  on  board 


tlie  vessel,  and  that  she  liad  a  hole  in 
her  bottom.  Treachery  should  be  paid 
with  treacliery  ;  and  it  is  a  more  tlian 
ordinary  pleasure  to  deceive  those  who 
would  deceive  us." 

The  above  account  of  Morrifl's 
adventures  is  drawn  from  the  journal 
which  he  sent  to  Bradstreet,  and  from 


i-l'jt! 


S.    fCnAP.XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI] 


I 


INACTION  OF  BRADSTREET. 


475 


Bradstreet  had  retraced  his  course  to  Sandusky, 
to  keep  his  engagement  with  the  Delaware  and 
Shawanoe  deputies,  and  await  the  fulfilment  of  their 
worthless  promise  to  surrender  their  prisoners,  and 
conclude  a  definitive  treaty  of  peace.  His  hopes 
were  destined  to  be  defeated.  The  appointed  time 
expired,  and  not  a  chief  was  seen,  though,  a  few  days 
after,  several  warriors  came  to  the  camp,  with  a  prom- 
ise that,  if  Bradstreet  would  remain  quiet,  and  refrain 
from  attacking  their  villages,  they  would  bring  in  the 
prisoners  in  the  course  of  the  following  week.  Brad- 
street accepted  their  excuses,  and,  having  removed  his 
camp  to  the  carrying-place  of  Sandusky,  lay  waiting 
in  patient  expectation.  It  was  here  that  he  received, 
for  the  first  time,  a  communication  from  General 
Gage,  respecting  the  preliminary  treaty,  concluded 
several  weeks  before.  Gage  condemned  his  conduct 
in  severe  terms,  and  ordered  him  to  break  the  en- 
gagements he  had  made,  and  advance  at  once  upon 
the  enemy,  choosing  for  his  first  objects  of  attack 
the  Indians  living  upon  the  plains  of  the  Scioto. 
The  fury  of  Bradstreet  was  great  on  receiving  this 
message,  and  it  was  not  diminished  when  the  journal 
of  Captain  Morris  was  placed  in  his  hands,  fully 
proving  how  signally  he  had  been  duped.  He  was 
in  no  temper  to  obey  the  orders  of  the  commander- 
in-chief;  and,  to  justify  himself  for  his  inaction,  he 
alleged  the  impossibility  of  reaching  the  Scioto  plains 
at  that  advanced  season.  Two  routes  thither  were 
open  to  his  choice,  one  by  the  River  Sandusky,  and 


'■».' 


■P 
■"* 

•Hi,  , 


ut 


r(*tS 


the  testimony  of  his  Indian  and  Ca-  lars  not  mentioned  by  Morris  himself, 

nadian  attendants,  given  in    Brad-  The  original  journal  is  in  the  Lon- 

strect's  presence,  at  his  camp  near  don  Archives.    The  other  document 

Sandusky.    This  testimony  was  re-  was  found  among  Sir  W.  Jolmson's 

corded,  and  contains  various  particu-  papers. 


■;  -J '  '>    I 


476  BBADSTBEET'S  ABMV  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Cuap.XXVI. 

the  other  by  the  Cayahoga  Creek.  The  water  in  the 
Sandusky  was  sunk  low  with  the  drought,  and  the 
carrying-place  at  the  head  of  Cayahoga  Creek  was  a 
few  miles  longer  than  had  been  represented;  yet  the 
army  were  ready  for  the  attempt,  and  these  difficul- 
ties could  not  have  deterred  a  vigorous  commander. 
Under  cover  of  such  excuses,  Bradstreet  remained 
idle  at  Sandusky  for  several  days,  while  sickness  and 
discontent  were  rife  in  his  camp.  The  soldiers  com- 
plained of  his  capricious,  peremptory  temper,  his 
harshness  to  his  troops,  and  the  unaccountable  ten- 
derness with  which  he  treated  the  Sandusky  Indians, 
some  of  whom  had  not  yet  made  their  submission, 
while  he  enraged  his  Iroquois  allies  by  his  frequent 
rebukes  and  curses.  ^  i  v  • 

At  length,  declaring  that  provisions  were  failing 
and  the  season  growing  late,  he  resolved  to  return 
home,  and  broke  up  his  camp  with  such  precipitancy 
that  several  soldiers,  who  had  gone  out  in  the  morn- 
ing to  procure  game  for  the  officers,  were  inhumanly 
left  behind.  The  boats  of  the  army  had  scarcely  en- 
tered Lake  Erie,  when  a  storm  descended  upon  them, 
destroying  several,  and  throwing  the  whole  into  con- 
fusion. For  three  days  the  tempest  raged  unceas- 
ingly; and  when  the  angry  lake  began  to  resume 
its  tranquillity,  it  was  found  that  the  remaining 
boats  were  insufficient  to  convey  the  troops.  A  large 
body  of  Indians,  together  with  a  detachment  of  pro- 
vincials, were  therefore  ordered  to  make  their  way 
to  Niagara  along  the  pathless  borders  of  the  lake. 
They  accordingly  set  out,  and,  after  many  days  of 
hardship,  reached  their  destination;  though  such  liad 
been  their  sufferings,  from  fatigue,  cold,  and  hunger, 
from   wading   swamps,   swimming   creeks   and   rivers, 


mi 


8.    [CuAP.XXVI. 


Chap.  XXVI.]       RESULTS  OP  THE  EXPEDITION. 


477 


and  pushing  their  way  through  tangled  thickets,  that 
many  of  the  provincials  perished  miser  'y  in  the 
woods.  On  the  fourth  of  November,  seventeen  days 
after  their  departure  from  Sandusky,  the  main  body 
of^the  little  army  arrived  in  safety  at  Niagara,  and 
the  whole,  reembarking  on  Lake  Ontario,  proceeded 
towards  Oswego.*  Fortune  still  seemed  adverse;  for 
a  second  tempest  arose,  and  one  of  the  schooners, 
crowded  with  troops,  foundered  in  sight  of  Oswego, 
though  most  of  the  men  were  saved.  The  route  to 
the  settlements  was  now  a  short  and  easy  one.  On 
their  arrival,  the  regulars  went  into  quarters,  while 
the  troops  levied  for  the  campaign  were  sent  home 
to  their  respective  provinces. 

This  expedition,  ill  conducted  as  it  was,  produced 
some  beneficial  results.  The  Indians  at  Detroit  had 
been  brought  to  reason,  and  for  the  present,  at 
least,  would  probably  remain  tranquil ;  while  the 
reestablishment  of  the  posts  on  the  upper  lakes 
must  necessarily  have  great  effect  upon  the  natives 
of  that  region.  At  Sandusky,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  work  had  been  but  half  done.  The  tribes  of 
that  place  felt  no  respect  for  the  English,  while 
those  to  the  southward  and  westward  had  been  left 
in  a  state  of  turbulence,  which  promised  an  abun- 
dant harvest  of  future  mischief."  In  one  particular, 
at  least,  Bradstreet  had  occasioned  serious  detriment 
to  the  English  interest.  The  Iroquois  allies,  who 
had  joined  his  army,  were  disgusted  by  his  treatment 
of  them,  whUe  they  were  roused  to  contempt  by  the 
imbecility  of  his  conduct  towards  the  enemy ;  and 
thus  the   efforts  of  Sir  William  Johnson"  to   secure 


\ 


;!*; 


1  Mantc,  535. 

^  MS.  Letter  —  Johnson  to  tlio  Board  of  Trade,  December  2G. 


"i: 


-i^'-i 


478  BRADSTREET'S  ARMY  ON  THE  LAKES.    [Chap.  XXVI. 

the  attachment  of  these  powerful   tribes  were  in  no 
small  degree  counteracted  and  neutralized.^ 

While  Bradstreet's  troops  were  advancing  upon 
the  lakes,  or  lying  idle  in  their  camp  at  Sandusky, 
another  expedition  was  in  progress  at  the  southward, 
with  abler  conduct  and  a  more  auspicious  result. 

1  The  provincial  officers,  to  whom  particulars  of  his  misconduct  diirini» 

the  command  of  the  Indian  allies  was  the  expedition.    This  curious  docu" 

assigned,  drew  up  a  paper  containinff  ment  was  found  among  the  private 

complaints  against  Bradstreet,  and  papers  of  Sir  William  Johnson. 


V 


J:Vi'>:i 


I  t 


w 


^^\ 


:---^>i^j 


.,  "f 


'        .si      1 


t  i 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 


BOUQUET   FORCES   THE   DELAWARES   AND   SHAWANOES 
TO   SUE   FOR   PEACE. 

The  scruples  of  the  Quakers,  and  the  dissensions 
in  the  provincial  government,  had  so  far  protracted 
the  debates  of  the  Pennsylvanian  Assembly,  that  it 
was  late  in  the  spring  before  supplies  were  granted 
for  the  service  of  the  ensuing  summer.  In  the 
mean  time,  the  w^ork  of  ravage  had  begun  afresh 
upon  the  borders.  The  Indians  had  taken  the  pre- 
caution to  remove  all  their  settlements  to  the  west- 
em  side  of  the  River  Muskingum,  trusting  that  the 
imperviou3  forests,  with  their  unnumbered  streams, 
would  prove  a  sufficient  barrier  against  invasion. 
Having  thus,  as  they  thought,  placed  their  women 
and  children  in  safety,  they  had  flung  themselves 
upon  the  settlements  with  all  the  rage  and  ferocity 
of  the  previous  season.  So  fierce  and  active  were 
the  war-parties  on  the  borders,  that  the  English  gov- 
ernor of  Pennsylvania  had  recourse  to  a  measure 
which  the  frontier  inhabitants  had  long  demanded, 
and  issued  a  proclamation,  oft*eruig  a  high  bounty  for 
Indian  scalps,  whether  of  men  or  women;  a  bar- 
barous expedient,  fruitful  of  butcheries  and  murders, 
but  incapable  of  producing  any  decisive  result.^ 

1  The  following  is  an  extract  from    that  there  shall  be  paid  out  of  the 

the  proclamation :  —  moneys  lately  granted  for  his  majes- 

"  I  do  hereby  declare  and  promise,    ty's  use,  to  all  and  every  person  and 


h  m 


'I- 


480 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Ciur.  XXVII. 


c 


I 

1 


Early  in  tho  season,  a  soldier  named  David  Owens, 
who,  several  years  before,  had  deserted  and  joined 
the  Indians,  came  to  one  of  the  outposts,  accom- 
panied by  a  young  provincial  recently  taken  prisoner 
on  the  Delaware,  and  bringing  five  scalps.  While 
living  among  the  Indians,  Owens  had  formed  a  con- 
nection  with  one  of  their  women,  who  had  borne 
him  several  children.  Growing  tired,  at  length,  of 
the  forest  life,  he  had  become  anxious  to  retum  to 
the  settlements,  but  feared  to  do  so  without  first 
having  made  some  atonement  for  his  former  deser- 
tion. One  night,  he  had  been  encamped  on  the  Sus- 
quehanna, with  a  party  consisting  of  four  Shawanoe 
warriors,  a  boy  of  the  same  tribe,  his  own  wife  and 
two  children,  and  another  Indian  woman.  Tlic 
young   provincial,  who  came  with  him  to  the  settle- 


M 


persons  not  in  the  pay  of  this  province, 
the  following  several  and  respective 
premiums  and  bounties  for  the  prison- 
ers and  scalps  of  the  enemy  Indians 
that  shall  be  taken  or  killed  within 
the  bounds  of  this  province,  as  lim- 
ited by  the  royal  charter,  or  in  pur- 
suit from  within  the  said  bounds ; 
that  is  to  say,  for  every  male  Indian 
enemy  above  ten  years  old,  who  shall 
be  taken  prisoner,  and  delivered  at 
any  forts  garrisoned  by  the  troops 
in  the  pay  of  this  province,  or  at  any 
of  the  county  towns,  to  the  keeper 
of  the  common  jails  there,  the  sum 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  Spanish 
dollars,  or  pieces  of  eight  For 
every  female  Indian  enemy,  taken 
prisoner  and  brought  in  as  aforesaid, 
and  for  every  male  Indian  enemy  of 
ten  years  old  or  under,  taken  pris- 
oner and  delivered  as  aforesaid,  tho 
sum  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  pieces 
of  eiglit  For  the  scalp  of  every 
male  Indian  enemy  above  the  age  of 
ten  years,  produced  aa  evidence  of 
tlioir  being  killed,  the  sum  of  one 
hundred  and  thirty-four  pieces  of 
eight.    And  for  the  scalp  of  every 


female  Indian  enemy  above  tlio  age 
of  ten  years,  produced  as  evidence 
of  their  being  killed,  the  sum  of  fifty 
pieces  of  eight" 

The  action  of  such  measures  haa 
recently  been  illustrated  in  tho  in- 
stance of  New  Mexico  before  its 
conquest  by  the  Americans.  The 
inhabitants  of  that  country,  too  tim- 
orous to  defend  themselves  against 
the  Apaches  and  other  tribes,  who 
descended  upon  them  in  frequent 
forays  from  the  neighboring  moun- 
tains, took  into  pay  a  band  of  for- 
eigners, chiefly  American  trappers, 
for  whom  the  Apache  lancos  had  no 
such  terrors,  and,  to  stimuiato  their 
exertions,  proclaimed  a  bounty  on 
scalps.  The  success  of  the  tnoas- 
ure  was  judged  admirable,  until  it 
waa  found  that  the  unscrupulous  con- 
federates were  in  the  habit  of  shoot- 
ing down  any  Indian,  whether  friend 
or  enemy,  who  came  within  rnnfre  of 
their  rifles,  and  that  the  government 
had  been  paying  rewards  for  the 
scalps  of  its  own  allies  and  depend- 
ants. 


m 


TRY.    [Ciixr.  XXVII. 


Chap.  XXVIIl 


DAVID  OWENS. 


':  ai/ 


481 


?d  David  Owens, 
Ttcd  and  joined 
outposts,  accom- 
[y  taken  prisoner 
B  scalps.  While 
id  formed  a  eon- 

who  had  borne 
;d,  at  length,  of 
ous  to  return  to 

so  without  first 
tiis  former  dcser- 
npcd  on  the  Sus- 
if  four  Shawanoe 
lis  own  wife  and 
n  woman.  The 
lim  to  the  settle- 


in  enemy  above  the  age 
},  produced  as  evidence 
^  killed,  the  sum  of  fifty 

rht" 

of  such  measures  has 
illustrated  in  the  in- 
cw  Mexico  before  its 
the   Americans.    The 
that  country,  too  tim- 
end  themselves  against 
and   other  tribon,  who 
ipon  them    in  frequent 
the  neighboring  iiioun- 
tito  pay  a  band  of  for- 
ifly  American  trappers, 
Apache  lancoH  had  no 
and,  to  stimulate  their 
•oclaimed  a  bounty  on 
success  of  the  rnen.s- 
ged  admirable,  until  it 
it  the  unscrupulous  con- 
e  in  the  habit  of  shoot- 
Indian,  whether  friend 
10  came  witliin  ninfre  of 
jd  that  the  government 
aying   rewards  for  the 
own  allies  and  depend- 


iiK  11  ts,  was  also  present.  In  the  middle  of  the 
uiglit,  Owens  arose,  and,  looking  about  liim,  saw,  by 
tlie  (lull  glow  of  the  cami)-fire,  that  idl  were  buried 
ill  deep  sleep.  Cautiously  awakening  the  young  pro- 
vincial, he  told  him  to  leave  the  place,  and  lie  quiet, 
at  a  little  distance,  until  he  should  call  him.  He 
next  stealthily  removed  the  weapons  from  beside  the 
sleeping  savages,  and  concealed  them  in  the  woods, 
reserving  to  himself  two  loaded  rifles.  Returning  to 
the  camp,  he  knelt  on  the  ground  between  two  of 
the  yet  unconscious  warriors,  and,  pointing  a  rifle  at 
the  head  of  each,  touched  the  triggers,  and  shot  both 
dead  at  once.  Startled  by  the  reports,  the  survivors 
sprang  to  their  feet  in  bewildered  terror.  The  two 
remaining  warriors  bounded  into  the  woods;  but  the 
women  and  children,  benumbed  with  fright,  had  no 
power  to  escajje,  and  one  and  all  died  shrieking 
under  the  hatchet  of  the  miscreant.  His  devilish 
work  complete,  the  wretch  sat  watching  until  day- 
light among  the  dead  bodies  of  his  children  and 
comrades,  undaunted  by  the  awful  gloom  and  soli- 
tude of  the  darkened  forest.  In  the  morning,  he 
scalped  his  victims,  with  the  exception  of  the  two 
children,  and,  followed  by  the  young  white  man, 
directed  his  steps  towards  the  settlements,  with  the 
bloody  trophies  of  his  atrocity.  His  desertion  was 
pardoned;  he  was  employed  as  an  interpreter,  and 
ordered  to  accompany  the  troops  on  the  intended 
expedition.  His  example  is  one  of  many  in  which 
the  worst  acts  of  Indian  ferocity  have  been  thrown 
into  shade  by  the  enormities  of  white  barbarians.^ 

1  Gordon,  Hist.  Pcnn.  625.     Rob-  "  Bumetsficld,  June  18th,  1764. 

ison,  Narrative.  "  David  Owens  was  a  Corporal  in 

Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  —  Sir  Capt.   McClean's   Compy.,  and    lay 

W,  Johnaon  to  Governor  Penn.  once  in  Garrison  at  my  House.    He 

61  0  0 


Ill 


482  BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


'  I 


Colonel  Bouquet  was  now  pushing  his  preparations 
for  the  campaign  with  his  utmost  zeal;  but  August 
arrived  before  the  provincial  troops  were  in  read- 
iness. On  the  fifth  of  that  month,  the  whole  force 
was  united  at  Carlisle,  and  consisted  of  five  hundred 
regulars,  —  most  of  whom  had  fought  in  the  battle 
of  Bushy  Run,  of  which  that  day  was  the  anniver- 
sary,—  a  thousand  Pennsylvanians,  and  a  small  but 
invaluable  corps  of  Virginia  riflemen.  After  remain- 
ing for  a  few  days  at  Carlisle,  the  troops  advanced 
to  Fort  Loudon,  which  they  reached  on  the  thir- 
teenth. Here  they  were  delayed  for  several  weeks, 
and  here  Bouquet  received  the  strange  communica- 
tion from  Colonel  Bradstreet,  in  which  the  latter 
informed  him  that  he  had  made  a  preliminary  treaty 
with  the  Delawares  and  Shawanoes,  ai  d  that  all 
operations  against  them  might  now  be  abandoned. 
We  have  already  seen  that  Bouquet  disregarded  this 
message,  thinking  himself  in  no  way  called  upon 
to  lay  aside  his  plans  against  an  enemy  who  was 
s'ling  for  peace  on  one  side,  and  butchering  and 
iTcalping  on  another.*    Continuing  therefore  to  advance, 


deserted  several  times,  as  I  am  in- 
formed, &  went  to  live  among  the 
Delawares  &  Shawanese,  with  whose 
language  he  was  acquainted.  His 
FaUier  having  been  long  a  trader 
amongst  them. 

"The  circnmstanccs  relating  to 
his  leaving  the  Indians  have  been 
told  me  by  several  Indians.  That 
he  went  out  a  hunting  with  his  In- 
dian Wife  and  several  of  her  rela- 
tions, most  of  whom,  with  his  Wife, 
he  killed  and  scalped  as  they  slept. 
As  he  was  always  much  attached  to 
Indians,  I  fancy  he  began  to  fear  he 
was  unsafe  amongst  them,  &  killed 
tlicm  ratlier  to  make  his  peace  witli 
the  English,  than  from  any  dislike 
uithcr  to  them  or  their  principles." 


t  Extract  from  a  MS.  Letter  — 
Colonel  Bouquet  to  Governor  Pcnn. 

"  Fort  Loudon,  27th  Aug.  1764. 
"Sir: 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  transmit  to 
you  a  letter  from  Colonel  Bradstreet, 
who  acquaints  me  that  he  has  grant- 
ed peace  to  all  tlie  Indians  liviii}; 
between  Lake  Erie  and  the  Ohio; 
but  OS  no  satisfaction  is  insisted 
on,  I  hope  the  General  will  not  con- 
firm it,  and  that  I  shall  not  be  a 
witness  to  a  transaction  which  would 
fix  an  indelible  stain  upon  the  Na- 
tion. 

"  I  therefore  take  no  notice  of  that 
pretended  peace,  &  proceed  fortJi- 
witii  on  tijc  expedition,  fully  deter- 


TRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


chap.xxvii]   his  message  to  the  DELAWARES. 


483 


Loudon,  27th  Aug.  1764. 


he  passed  in  safety  the  scene  of  his  desperate  fight 
of  the  last  summer,  and  on  the  seventeenth  of  Sep- 
tember arrived  at  Fort  Pitt,  with  no  other  loss  than 
that  of  a  few  men  picked  off  from  the  flanks  and 
rear  by  lurking  Indian  marksmen.  ^o  a^f  liVfe 

Soon  after  his  arrival,  a  party  of  Delaware  chiefs 
appeared  on  the  farther  bank  of  the  river,  pretend- 
ing to  be  deputies  sent  by  their  nation  to  confer 
with  the  English  commander.  Three  of  them,  after 
much  hesitation,  came  over  to  the  fort,  where,  being 
closely  questioned,  and  found  unable  to  give  any 
good  account  of  their  mission,  they  were  detained  as 
spies,  while  their  companions,  greatly  disconcerted, 
iied  back  to  their  villages.  Bouquet  released  one  of 
the  three  captives,  and  sent  him  home  with  the  fol- 
lowing message  to  his  people:  — 

"  I  have  received  an  account,  from  Colonel  Brad- 
street,  that  your  nations  had  begged  for  peace,  which 
he  had  consented  to  grant,  upon  assurance  that  you 
had  recalled  all  your  warriors  from  our  frontiers ; 
and  in  consequence  of  this,  I  would  not  have  pro- 
ceeded against  your  towns,  if  I  had  not  heard  that, 
in  open  violation  of  your  engagements,  you  have 
since  murdered  several  of  our  people. 

"  I  was  therefore  determined  to  have  attacked 
you,  as  a  people  whose  promises  can  no  more  be 
rehed  on.  But  I  will  put  it  once  more  in  your 
power  to  save  yourselves  and  your  families  from 
total  destruction,  by  giving  us  satisfaction  for  the 
hostilities  committed  against  us.  And  first,  you  are 
to  leave  the  path  open  for  my  expresses  from  hence 
to  Detroit;  and  as  I  am  now  to  send  two  men  with 


^' 


^^|.   ' 


■.^1 


3  expedition,  fully  deter- 


mineu  u)  ireai  oh  unoimea  any  uei-    my  way,  till  1  receive  contrary  oraers 
awares  or  Shawanesc  I  shall  find  in    from  the  General." 


V 


484 


BOUQUET  IS  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [CiiAr.  XJCVII. 


despatches  to  Colonel  Bradstreet,  who  commands  ou 
the  lakes,  I  desire  to  know  whether  you  will  send 
two  of  your  people  to  bring  them  safe  back  with 
an  answer.  And  if  they  receive  any  injury  either 
in  going  or  coming,  or  if  the  letters  are  taken  from 
them,  I  will  immediately  put  the  Indians  now  in 
my  power  to  death,  and  will  show  no  mercy,  for 
the  future,  to  any  of  your  nations  that  shall  fall  into 
my  hands.  I  allow  you  ten  days  to  have  my  letters 
delivered  at  Detroit,  and  ten  days  to  bring  me  back 
an  answer."^ 

The  liberated  spy  faithfully  discharged  his  mission, 
and  the  firm,  decisive  tone  of  the  message  had  a 
profound  effect  upon  the  hostile  warriors;  clearly 
indicating,  as  it  did,  with  what  maimer  of  man  tliey 
had  to  deal.  Many,  who  were  before  clamorous  for 
battle,  were  now  ready  to  sue  for  peace,  as  the  only 
means  to  avert  their  ruin.        ..,.,,.,  . .;  ./  :„  , 

Before  the  army  was  ready  to  march,  two  Iroquois 
warriors  came  to  the  fort,  pretending  friendship,  but 
anxious,  in  reality,  to  retard  the  expedition  until  the 
approaching  winter  should  make  it  impossible  to 
proceed.  They  represented  the  numbers  of  the 
enemy,  and  the  extreme  difficulty  of  penetrating  so 
rough  a  country,  and  affiimed  that  if  the  troops 
remained  quiet,  the  hostile  tribes,  who  were  already 
collecting  their  prisoners,  would  soon  arrive  to  make 
their  submission.  Bouquet  turned  a  deaf  ear  to 
their  advice,  and  sent  them  to  inform  the  Delawarcs 
and  Shawanoes  that  he  was  on  his  way  to  chastise 
them  for  their  pei-fidy  and  cruelty,  unless  they 
should  save  themsehes  by  an  ample  and  speedy 
atonement 

1  Hutchins,  Account  of  Bonquet's  Expedition,  5. 


TRY.    [CiiAP.  XICVII. 


Chap.  XXVII.^  TUB  JIARCH  OF  HIS  ARMY. 


485 


Early  in  October,  the  troops  left  Fort  Pitt,  and 
began  their  westward  march  into  a  wilderness  which 
no  array  had  ever  before  sought  to  penetrate.  En- 
cumbered with  their  camp  equipage,  with  droves  of 
cattle  and  sheep  for  subsistence,  and  a  long  train 
of  pack  horses  laden  with  provision,  their  progress 
was  tedious  and  difficult,  and  seven  or  eight  miles 
were  the  ordinary  measure  of  a  day's  march.  The 
woodsmen  of  Virginia,  veteran  hunters  and  Indian- 
fighters,  were  thrown  far  out  in  front,  and  on  either 
flank,  scouring  the  forest  to  detect  any  sign  of  a 
lurking  ambuscade.  The  pioneers  toiled  in  the  van, 
hewing  their  way  through  woods  and  thickets,  while 
the  army  dragged  its  weary  length  behind  them 
through  the  forest,  like  a  serpent  creeping  through 
tall  grass.  The  surrounding  country,  whenever  a 
casual  opening  in  the  matted  foliage  gave  a  glimpse 
of  its  features,  disclosed  scenery  of  wild,  primeval 
beauty.-  Sometimes  the  array  skirted  the  margin 
of  the  Ohio,  with  its  broad  eddying  current  and  the 
bright  landscape  of  its  shores.  Sometiraes  they  de- 
scended into  the  thickest  gloora  of  the  woods,  damp, 
still,  and  cool  as  the  recesses  of  a  cavern,  where  the 
black  soil  oozed  beneath  the  tread,  where  the  rough 
columns  of  the  forest  seemed  to  exude  a  clammy  sweat, 
and  the  slimy  mosses  were  trickling  with  moisture, 
while  the  carcasses  of  prostrate  trees,  green  with  the 
decay  of  a  century,  sank  into  pulp  at  the  lightest 
pressure  of  the  foot.  More  frequently,  the  forest  was 
of  a  fresher  growth,  and  the  restless  leaves  of  young- 
maples  and  basswood  shook  down  spots  of  sunlight 
on  the  marching  columns.  Sometimes  they  waded 
the  clear  current  of  a  stream,  with  its  vistas  of  arch- 
ing foliage  and  sparkling  water.     There  were  intervals, 

00* 


■vtI^'' 


•a- '  ii 


j'    i 


486 


BOUQUET  IN    THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


but  these  were  rare,  when,  escaping  for  a  moment 
from  the  labyrinth  of  woods,  they  emerged  into  the 
light  of  an  open  meadow,  rich  with  herbage,  and 
girdled  by  a  zone  of  forest,  gladdened  by  the  notes 
of  birds,  and  enlivened,  it  may  be,  by  grazing  herds 
of  deer.  These  spots,  welcome  to  the  forest  travel- 
ler as  an  oasis  to  a  wanderer  in  the  desert,  form  the 
precursors  of  the  prairies,  which,  growing  wider  and 
more  frequent  as  one  advances  westward,  expand  at 
last  into  the  boundless  plains  beyond  the  Mississippi!. 

On  the  tenth  day  after  leaving  Fort  Pitt,  the  army 
reached  the  Tliver  Muskingum,  and  approached  the 
objects  of  tboir  march,  the  homes  and  sanctuaries  of 
the  barbarian  warriors,  who  had  turned  whole  dis- 
tricts into  desolation.  Their  progress  had  met  no 
interruption.  A  few  skulking  Indians  had  hovered 
about  them,  but,  alarmed  by  their  numbers,  feared 
to  venture  an  attack.  The  Indian  cabins  Avhich  they 
passed  on  their  way  were  deserted  by  their  tenants, 
who  had  jomed  their  western  brethren.  When  the 
troops  crossed  the  Muskingum,  they  saw,  a  little  be- 
loAV  the  fording-place,  the  abandoned  wigwams  of  the 
village  of  Tuscaroras,  recently  the  abode  of  more 
than  a  hundred  families,  who  had  fled  in  terror  at 
the  approach  of  the  invaders. 

Bouquet  was  in  the  heart  of  the  enemy's  country. 
Their  villages,  except  some  remoter  settlements  of 
the  Shawanoes,  all  lay  within  a  few  days'  march,  and 
no  other  choice  was  left  them  than  to  sue  for  peace, 
or  risk  the  desperate  chances  of  battle  against  a 
commander  who,  a  year  before,  Avith  a  third  of  his 
present  force,  had  signally  routed  them  at  the  fight 
of  Bushy  Run.  The  vigorous  and  active  among  them 
might,  it  is  true,  escape  by  flight;   but,  in  doing  so, 


TRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


Chap.  XXVH.] 


TERROR  OF  THE  ENEMY. 


r-;): 


487 


they  must  abandon  to  the  victors  their  dwellings,  and 
their  secret  hordes  of  corn.  They  were  confounded  at 
the  midtitude  of  the  invadei-s,  exaggerated,  doubtless, 
in  the  reports  which  reached  their  villages,  and  amazed 
that  an  army  should  force  its  way  so  deep  into  the 
forest  fastnesses,  which  they  had  always  deemed  im- 
pregnable. They  knew,  on  the  other  hand,  that  Colo- 
nel Bradstreet  was  still  at  Sandusky,  in  a  position  to 
assail  them  in  the  rear.  Thus  pressed  on  both  sides, 
they  saw  that  they  must  submit,  and  bend  their  stub- 
bom  pride  to  beg  for  peace,  not  alone  with  words 
which  cost  nothing,  and  would  hove  been  worth  noth- 
ing, but  by  the  delivery  of  prisoners,  and  the  surrender 
of  chiefs  and  warriors  as  hostages  of  good  faith.  Bou- 
quet had  sent  two  soldiers  from  Fort  Pitt  with  letters 
to  Colonel  Bradstreet;  but  these  men>  in  defiance  of 
his  threats,  had  been  seized  and  detained  by  the 
Delawares.  They  now  appeared  at  his  camp,  sent 
back  by  their  captors,  with  a  message  to  the  effect 
that  within  a  few  days  the  chiefs  would  arrive  and 
hold  a  conference  with  him. 

Bouquet  continued  his  march  down  the  valley  of 
the  Muskingum,  imtil  he  reached  a  spot  where  the 
broad  meadows,  which  bordered  the  river,  Avould  sup- 
ply abundant  grazing  for  the  cattle  and  horses,  while 
tlie  terraces  above,  shaded  by  forest-trees,  ofiered  a 
convenient  site  for  encampment.  Here  he  began  to 
erect  a  small  palisade  work,  as  a  depot  for  stores  and 
baggage.  Before  the  task  was  complete,  a  deputation 
of  chiefs  arrived,  bringing  word  that  their  warriors 
were  encamped,  in  great  numbers,  about  eight  miles 
fiom  the  spot,  and  desiring  Bouquet  to  appoint  the 
time  and  place  for  a  council.  He  ordered  them  to 
meet  him,  on  the  next  day,  at  a  point  near  the  margin 


ill 


'■■■ 

■  i, : 

;t* 

i 

F        ■IV '*-•■> 

i*'  "    ''^1- 

i. 

' 

'%-   ' 

■•vt\ 

'  '  4f.- 

..^•i-^f 

■4  * 


488 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVIl 


(. 


of  the  river,  a  little  below  the  camp;  and  thither  a 
party  of  men  were  at  once  despatched,  to  erect  a  sort 
of  rustic  arbor  of  saplings  and  the  boughs  of  trees, 
large  enough  to  shelter  the  English  officers  and  the 
Indian  chiefs.  With  a  host  of  warriors  in  the  neigh- 
borhood,  who  would  gladly  break  in  upon  them, 
could  they  hope  that  the  attack  would  succeed,  it 
behoved  the  English  to  use  every  precaution.  A 
double  guard  was  placed,  and  a  stringent  disciplinp 
enforced. 

In  the  morning,  the  little  army  moved  in  battle 
order  to  the  place  of  council.  Here  the  principal 
officers  assumed  their  seats  under  the  canopy ,  of 
branches,  while  the  glittering  array  of  the  troops 
was  drawn  out  on  the  meadow  in  front,  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  produce  the  most  imposing  effect  on  thu 
minds  of  the  Indians,  in  whose  eyes  the  sight  of  fif. 
teen  hundred  men  under  amis  was  a  spectacle  equally 
new  and  astounding.  The  perfect  order  and  silence 
of  the  far-extended  lines,  the  ridges  of  bayonets  flash- 
ing in  the  sun,  the  fluttering  tartans  of  the  Highland 
regulars,  the  bright  red  uniform  of  the  Royal  Ameri- 
cans, the  darker  garb  and  duller  trappings  of  the 
Pennsylvania  troops,  and  the  bands  of  Virginia  back- 
woodsmen, who,  in  fringed  hunting-frocks  and  Indian 
moccasons,  stood  leaning  carelessly  on  their  rifles,— 
all  these  combined  to  form  a  scene  of  military  pomp 
and  power  not  soon  to  be  forgotten. 

At  the  appointed  hour,  the  deputation  appeared. 
The  most  prominent  among  them  were  Kiashuta, 
chief  of  the  band  of  Senecas  who  had  deserted  their 
ancient  homes  to  form  a  colony  on  the  Ohio;  Cus- 
taloga,  chief  of  the  Delawares;  and  the  head  chief 
of  the   Shawanoes,  whose   name   sets   orthography  at 


'RY.    [CnAP.XXVIL 


Chap.  XXVn.]     SPEECH  OF  THE  DELAWARE  ORATOR.         489 

defiance.  As  they  approached,  painted  and  plumed  in 
all  their  savage  pomp,  they  looked  neither  to  the 
right  hand  nor  to  the  left,  not  deigning,  under  the 
eyes  of  their  enemy,  to  cast  even  a  glance  at  the 
military  display  around  them.  They  seated  them- 
selves, with  stem,  impassive  looks,  and  an  air  of 
sullen  dignity,  while  their  black  and  sombre  brows 
betrayed  the  hatred  still  rankling  in  their  hearts. 
After  a  few  minutes  had  been  consumed  in  the  in- 
dispensable ceremony  of  smoking.  Turtle  Heart,  a 
chief  0^  the  Delawares,  and  orator  of  the  deputation, 
rose,  bfci*ring  in  his  hand  a  bag  containing  the  belts 
of  wampum.  Addressing  himself  to  the  English  com- 
mander, he  spoke  as  follows,  delivering  a  belt  for 
every  clause  of  his  speech: —  .^' 

"Brother,  I  speak  in  behalf  of  the  three  nations 
whose  chiefs  are  here  present.  With  this  belt  I  open 
your  ears  and  your  hearts,  that  you  may  listen  to 
my  words.  ,,» 

"Brother,  this  war  was  neither  your  fault  nor 
ours.  It  was  the  work  of  the  nations  who  live  to 
the  westward,  and  of  our  wild  young  men,  who  would 
have  killed  us  if  we  had  resisted  them.  "We  now  put 
away  all  evil  from  our  hearts,  and  we  hope  that  your 
mind  and  ours  wUl  once  more  be  united  together. 

"Brother,  it  is  the  will  of  the  Great  Spirit  that 
there  should  be  peace  between  us.  We,  on  our  side, 
now  take  fast  hold  of  the  chain  of  friendship ;  but,  as 
we  cannot  hold  it  alone,  we  desire  that  you  will  take 
hold  also,  and  we  must  look  up  to  the  Great  Spirit, 
that  he  may  make  us  strong,  and  not  permit  this 
chain  to  fall  from  our  hands. 

"Brother,  these  words  come  from  our  hearts,  and 
not  from  our  lips.     You  desire  that  we  should  deliver 
62 


.1* 


'Ml: 


1,4    i 


490 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVIJ. 


€■■ 


up  your  flesh  and  blood  now  captive  among  us ;  and, 
to  show  you  that  "we  are  sincere,  we  now  return  you 
as  many  of  them  as  we  have  at  present  been  able  to 
bring.  [Here  he  delivered  eighteen  white  prisoners, 
who  had  been  brought  by  the  deputation  to  the 
council.]  You  shall  receive  the  rest  as  soon  as  we 
have  time  to  collect  them."^ 

In  such  figurative  terms,  not  devoid  of  dignity,  did 
the  Indian  orator  sue  for  peace  to  his  detested  ene- 
mies. When  he  had  concluded,  the  chiefs  of  every 
ti-ibe  rose  in  succession,  to  express  concurrence  in 
what  he  had  said,  each  delivering  a  belt  of  wampum 
and  a  bundle  of  small  sticks,  the  latter  designed  to 
indicate  the  number  of  English  prisoners  whom  his 
followers  retained,  and  whom  he  pledged  himself  to 
surrender.  In  an  Indian  council,  when  one  of  the 
speakers  has  advanced  a  matter  of  weight  and 
urgency,  the  other  party  defers  his  reply  to  the 
following  day,  that  due  time  may  be  allowed  for 
deliberation.  Accordingly,  in  the  present  instance, 
the  council  adjourned  to  the  next  morning,  each 
party  retiring  to  its  respective  camp.  But,  when  day 
dawned,  a  change  was  apparent  in  the  aspects  of  the 
weather.  The  valley  of  the  Muskingum  was  filled 
with    driving   mist   and   rain,   and    the    meeting  was 


Ifl 


1  This  speech  is  taken  from  the 
official  journals  of  Colonel  Bouquet, 
a  copy  of  which  is  preserved  in  the 
archives  of  Pennsylvania,  at  Har- 
risburj^,  engrossed,  if  the  writer's 
memory  docs  not  fail  him,  in  one  of 
the  volumes  of  the  Provincial  Rec- 
ords. The  narrative  of  Ilutchins, 
wliich  has  often  been  cited,  is  chiefly 
founded  upon  the  authority  of  tiicse 
document'* ;  and  tiie  writer  has  used 
his   mntcriiils   witli   great  skill   and 


faitlifulness,  tliough  occasionally  it 
has  been  found  advisable  to  have  re- 
course to  the  original  journals,  to 
supply  some  omission  or  obscurity  in 
Hutchins'  compilation.  This  w  ritci's 
personal  familiarity  witli  the  Indian 
country,  and  his  acquaintance  with 
tlic  actors  in  tliese  scenes,  iiavc,  liow- 
ever,  given  a  life  and  chanictcr  t" 
his  narrative,  which  is  altogether 
wanting  in  the  formal  pages  of  uii 
official  report. 


FRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


Chap.  XXVII] 


RErLY  OF  BOUQUET. 


491 


in  conseqi;cxic'C  postponed.  On  the  third  day,  the 
landscape  brightened  afresh,  the  troops  marched  once 
more  to  the  place  of  council,  and  the  Indian  chiefs 
convened  to  ^  -ar  the  reply  of  their  triumphant  foe. 
It  was  not  of  a  kind  to  please  them.  The  first 
opening  words  gave  an  earnest  of  what  was  to  come ; 
for  Bouquet  discarded  the  usual  address  of  an  In- 
dian harangue,  fathers,  brothers,  or  children,  —  terms 
which  imply  a  relation  of  friendship,  or  a  desire 
to  conciliate,  —  and  adopted  a  sterner  and  more  dis- 
tant form. 

"Sachems,  war-chiefs,  and  warriors,'  the  excuses 
you  have  offered  are  frivolous  and  unavailing,  and 
your  conduct  is  without  defence  or  apology.  You 
could  not  have  acted  as  you  pretend  to  have  done 
through  fear  of  the  western  nations;  for,  had  you 
stood  faithful  to  us,  you  knew  that  we  would  have 
protected  you  against  their  anger;  and  as  for  your 
young  men,  it  was  your  duty  to  punish  them,  if  they 
did  amiss.  You  have  drawn  down  our  just  resent- 
ment by  your  violence  and  perfidy.  Last  summer,  in 
cold  blood,  and  in  a  time  of  profound  peace,  you 
robbed  and  murdered  the  traders,  who  had  come 
among  you  at  your  own  express  desire.  You  at- 
tacked Fort  Pitt,  which  was  built  by  your  consent, 
and  you  destroyed  our  outposts  and  garrisons,  when- 
ever treachery  could  place  them  in  your  power. 
You  assailed  our  troops  —  the  same  who  now  stand 


■■Sk, 


1  The  sacliem  is  tlie  civil  chief, 
who  directs  the  counsels  of  tlie  tribe, 
and  governs  in  time  of  peace.  His 
office,  on  certain  conditions,  is  heredi- 
tary, while  the  war-chief,  or  military 
leader,  acquires  his  authority  solely 
by  personal  merit,  and  seldom  trans- 
mits it  to  his  offspring.    Sometimes 


the  civil  and  military  functions  are 
discharged  by  the  same  person,  as  in 
the  instance  of  Pontiac  himself. 

The  speech  of  Bouquet,  as  given 
abcvc,  is  taken,  with  some  omission 
and  condensation,  from  the  journals 
mentioned  in  the  preceding  note. 


B  3 


»►■■■ 

r 

* 

492 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII 


before  you  —  in  the  woods  at  Bushy  Run ;  and,  when 
we  had  routed  and  driven  you  off,  you  sent  yoiu- 
scalping-parties  to  the  frontier,  and  murdered  many 
hundreds  of  our  people.  Last  July,  when  the  other 
nations  came  to  ask  for  peace,  at  Niagara,  you  not 
only  refused  to  attend,  but  sent  an  insolent  message 
instead,  in  which  you  expressed  a  pretended  contempt 
for  the  English,  and,  at  the  same  time,  told  the  sur- 
rounding nations  that  you  would  never  lay  down  the 
hatchet.  Afterwards,  when  Colonel  Bradstreet  came 
up  Lake  Eric,  you  sent  a  deputation  of  your  chiefs, 
and  concluded  a  treaty  with  him;  but  your  engage- 
ments were  no  sooner  made  than  broken;  and  from 
that  day  to  this,  you  have  scalped  and  butchered  us 
without  ceasing.  Nay,  I  am  informed  that,  when  you 
heard  that  this  army  was  penetrating  the  woods,  you 
mustered  your  warriors  to  attack  us,  and  were  onh 
deterred  from  doing  so  when  you  found  how  greatly 
we  outnumbered  you.  This  is  not  the  only  instance 
of  your  bad  faith ;  for,  since  the  beginning  of  the  last 
war,  you  have  made  repeated  treaties  with  us,  and 
promised  to  give  up  your  prisoners ;  but  you  have 
never  kept  these  engagements,  nor  any  others.  We 
shall  endure  this  no  longer;  and  I  am  now  come 
among  you  to  force  you  to  make  atonement  for  the 
injuries  you  have  done  us.  I  have  brought  with  me 
the  relatives  of  those  you  have  murdered.  They  are 
eager  for  vengeance,  and  nothing  restrains  them  from 
taking  it  but  my  assurance  that  this  army  shall  not 
leave  your  country  until  you  have  given  them  an 
ample  satisfaction. 

"  Your  allies,  the  Ottawas,  Ojibwas,  and  Wyan- 
dots,  have  begged  for  peace;  the  Six  Nations  have 
leagued    themselves   with    us;    the   great   lakes   and 


ITUY.    [CiiAr.  XXVU. 


CiiAP.XXVn.]     EFFECT  OP  BOUQUET'S  SPEECH 


493 


rivers  around  you  are  all  in  our  possession,  and  your 
friends  the  French  are  in  subjection  to  us,  and  can 
do  no  more  to  aid  you.  You  are  all  in  our  power, 
and  if  we  choose  we  can  exterminate  you  from  the 
earth;  but  the  English  are  a  merciful  and  generous 
people,  averse  to  shed  the  blood  even  of  their  great- 
est enemies;  and  if  it  were  possible  that  you  could 
convince  us  that  you  sincerely  repent  of  your  past 
perfidy,  and  that  we  could  depend  on  your  good  be- 
havior for  the  future,  you  might  yet  hope  for  mercy 
and  peace.  If  I  find  that  you  faithfully  execute  the 
conditions  which  I  shall  prescribe,  I  will  not  treat 
you  with  the  severity  you  deserve. 

"I  give  you  twelve  days  from  this  date  to  deliver 
into  my  hands  all  the  prisoners  in  your  possession, 
without  exception;  Englishmen,  Frenchmen,  women, 
and  children ;  whether  adopted  into  your  tribes,  mar- 
ried, or  living  among  you  under  any  denomination 
or  pretence  whatsoever.  And  you  are  to  furnish 
these  prisoners  with  clothing,  provision,  and  horses, 
to  carry  them  to  Fort  Pitt.  "VSTien  you  have  fully 
complied  with  these  conditions,  you  shall  then  know 
on  what  terms  you  may  obtain  the  peace  you  sue 
for."        '.     ^       '     .  ■ 

This  speech,  with  the  stem  voice  and  countenance 
of  the  speaker,  told  with  chilling  effect  upon  the 
awe-stricken  hearers.  It  quelled  their  native  haugh- 
tiness, and  sunk  them  to  the  depths  of  humiliation. 
Their  speeches  in  reply  were  dull  and  insipid,  void 
of  that  savage  eloquence,  which,  springing  from  a 
wild  spirit  of  independence,  has  so  often  distinguished 
the  forest  orators.  Judging  the  temper  of  their  ene- 
mies by  their  own  insatiable  thirst  for  vengeance, 
they  hastened,  with  all  the  alacrity  of  terror,  to  fulfil 


t,m 


■4Kl 


494 


BOUQUET   IN   Tin:   INDIAN  COUNTUY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


tho  prescribed  conditions,  and  avert  the  threatened 
niin.  They  dispersed  to  their  different  villages,  to 
collect  and  bring  in  the  prisoners;  while  Bouquet, 
on  his  part,  knowing  that  his  bt^st  security  for  their 
good  faith  was  to  keep  up  the  alarm  which  liis  dc- 
cisive  measures  had  created,  deteiinined  to  march  yot 
nearer  to  their  settlements.  Still  following  the  course 
of  the  Muskingum,  he  descended  to  a  spot  near  its 
confluence  with  its  main  branch,  which  might  be  lo 
garded  as  a  central  point  with  respect  to  the  sui- 
rounding  Indian  villages.  Here,  with  the  exception 
of  the  distant  Shawanoe  settlements,  they  were  all 
within  reach  of  his  hand,  and  he  could  readily  chas- 
tise the  first  attempt  at  deceit  or  evasion.  Tho 
principal  chiefs  of  each  tribe  had  been  forced  to 
accompany  him  as  hostages. 

For  the  space  of  a  day,  hundreds  of  axes  were 
busy  at  their  work.  The  trees  were  felled,  the  ground 
cleared,  and,  with  marvellous  rapidity,  a  town  sprang 
up  in  the  heart  of  the  wilderness,  martial  in  aspect 
and  rigorous  in  discipline;  with  storehouses,  hospi- 
tals,  and  works  of  defence,  rude  sylvan  cabins  min- 
gled with  white  tents,  and  the  forest  rearing  its 
sombre  rampart  round  the  whole.  On  one  side  of 
this  singular  encampment  was  a  range  of  buildings. 
designed  to  receive  the  expected  prisoners;  and  ma- 
trons, brought  for  this  puqiose  with  the  aiTny,  were 
apix)uited  to  take  charge  of  the  women  and  cliildien 
among  tliem.  At  the  opposite  end,  a  canopy  i' 
bmnchcs,  sustained  on  the  upright  trunks  of  younj; 
trees,  formed  a  rude  council-hall,  in  keeping  with  the 
savage  assembly  for  whose  reception  it  was  designed. 

And  now,  issuing  from  the  forest,  came  warriors, 
conducting    troops    of  prisoners,    or    leading    captive 


THY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


CiiAP.  XXVII]       MESSAGE  FROM  BRADSTRKET. 


495 


r   leading   captive 


children,  —  wild  young  barbarians,  bom  perhaps 
among  themselves,  and  scarcely  to  be  distinguished 
from  their  own.  Yet,  seeing  the  sullen  reluctance 
which  the  Indians  soon  betrayed  in  this  ungruLeful 
task.  Bouquet  thought  it  expedient  to  stimiUate  their 
efforts  by  sending  detachments  of  soldiers  to  each 
of  the  villages,  still  retaining  the  chiefs  in  pledge 
for  their  safety.  About  this  time,  a  party  of  friendly 
Indians  arrived  with  a  letter  from  Colonel  Brad- 
street,  dated  at  Sandusky.  The  writer  declai-ed  that 
lie  was  unable  to  remain  longer  in  the  Indian  coun- 
try, and  was  on  the  point  of  retiring  down  Lake 
Erie  with  his  army;  a  movement  which,  at  the  least, 
was  of  doubtful  necessity,  and  which  might  have  in- 
volved the  most  disastrous  consequences.  Had  the 
tidings  been  received  but  a  few  days  sooner,  the 
whole  effect  of  Bouquet's  measures  would  probably 
have  been  destroyed,  the  Indians  encouraged  to  re- 
sistance, and  the  war  brought  to  the  arbitration  of  a 
battle,  which  must  needs  have  been  a  fierce  and 
bloody  one.  But,  happily  for  both  parties,  Bouquet 
now  had  his  enemies  firmly  in  his  p'  asp,  and  the 
held'       warrior  dared  not  violate  the  truce. 

Tlie  messengers  who  brought  the  letter  of  Biad- 
^tivil  brought  also  the  tidings  that  peace  was  made 
with  the  nortliem  Indians,  but  stated,  at  the  same 
time,  that  these  tribes  had  murdered  many  of  their 
captives,  and  given  up  few  of  the  remainder,  so  that 
no  small  number  were  still  within  tlieir  power.  The 
conduct  of  Bradstrect  in  this  matter  was  the  more 
disgraceful,  since  he  had  been  encamped  for  weeks 
almost  within  gunshot  of  the  Wyandot  villages  at 
Sandusky,  where  most  of  the  prisoners  w^ere  detained. 
Bouquet,  on  his  part,  though  separated  from  this  place 


■'■•I 


in"  ^m 


*•;  I 


Vi 


496 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII, 


\    i 


II 


by  a  journey  of  many  days,  resolved  to  take  upon  him- 
self the  duty  which  his  brother  officer  had  strangely 
neglected.  He  sent  an  embassy  to  Sandusky,  de- 
manding that  the  prisoners  should  be  surrendered. 
This  measure  was  in  a  great  degree  successful.  He 
despatched  messengers  soon  after  to  the  principal 
Shawanoe  village,  on  the  Scioto,  distant  about  eighty 
miles  from  his  camp,  to  rouse  the  inhabitants  to  a 
greater  activity  than  they  seemed  inclined  to  dis- 
play. This  was  a  fortunate  step,  for  the  Shawanoes 
of  the  Scioto,  who  had  been  guilty  of  atrocious  cru- 
elties during  the  war,  had  conceived  the  idea  that 
they  were  excluded  from  the  general  amnesty,  and 
marked  out  for  destruction.  This  notion  had  been 
propagated,  and  perhaps  suggested,  by  the  French 
traders  in  their  villages;  and  so  thorough  was  the 
conviction  of  the  Shawanoes,  that  they  came  to  the 
desperate  purpose  of  murdering  their  prisoners,  and 
marching,  with  all  the  warriors  they  could  muster,  to 
attack  the  English.  This  plan  was  no  sooner  formed 
than  the  French  traders  opened  their  stores  of  bul- 
lets and  gunpowder,  and  dealt  them  out  freely  to  the 
Indians.  Bouquet's  messengers  came  in  time  to  pre- 
vent the  catastrophe,  and  relieve  the  terrors  of  the 
Shawanoes,  by  the  assurance  that  peace  would  be 
granted  to  them  on  the  same  conditions  as  to  the  rest. 
Thus  encouraged,  they  abandoned  their  design,  and 
set  out  with  lighter  hearts  for  the  English  camp, 
bringing  with  them  a  portion  of  their  prisoners. 
When  about  half  way  on  their  journey,  they  were 
met  by  an  Indian  runner,  who  told  them  that  a 
soldier  had  been  killed  in  the  woods,  and  their  tribe 
charged  with  ihe  crime.  On  hearmg  this,  their  fear 
rcvi\ed,   and  with  it  their   former  purpose.     Having 


FRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


Cpap.  XXVII.J     SUBMISSION  OF  THE  SHAWAN0E6. 


497 


collected  their  prisoners  in  a  meadow,  they  sur- 
rounded the  miserable  wretches,  armed  with  guns, 
war-clubs,  and  bows  and  arrows,  and  prepared  to 
put  them  to  death.  But  another  runner  arrived 
before  the  butchery  began,  and,  assuring  them  that 
what  they  had  heard  was  false,  prevailed  on  them 
once  more  to  proceed.  They  pursued  their  journey 
without  farther  interruption,  and,  coming  in  safety 
to  the  camp,  delivered  the  prisoners  whom  they  had 

brought.  :  T:  ^.i»;Mi:      V!,^,!.'*; 

These  by  no  means  included  the  whole  number 
of  their  captives,  for  nearly  a  hundred  were  of  ne- 
cessity left  behind,  because  they  belonged  to  warriors 
who  had  gone  to  the  Illinois  to  procure  arms  and 
ammunition  from  the  French ;  and  there  is  no  au- 
thority in  an  Indian  community  powerful  enough  to 
deprive  the  meanest  warrior  of  his  property,  even  in 
circumstances  of  the  greatest  public  exigency.  This 
was  clearly  understood  by  the  English  commander, 
and  he  therefore  received  the  submission  of  the 
Shawanoes,  though  not  without  compelling  them  to 
deliver  hostages  for  the  future  surrender  of  the  re- 
maining prisoners.  ''-'     '^  ■   7^^--;     '    i#fr 

Band  after  band  of  captives  had  been  daily  ar- 
riving, until  upwards  of  two  hundred  were  now  col- 
lected in  the  camp ;  including,  as  far  as  could  be 
ascertained,  all  who  had  been  in  the  hands  of  the 
Indians,  excepting  those  belonging  to  the  absent 
warriors  of  the  Shawanoes.  Up  to  this  time.  Bou- 
quet had  maintained  a  stern  and  rigorous  demeanor, 
repressing  the  spirit  of  clemency  and  humanity 
which  eminently  distinguished  him,  refusing  all 
friendly  intercourse  with  the  Indians,  and  telling 
them  that  he   should   treat   them   as  enemies   until 


63 


pp 


i 


r  'fv 


498 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


they  had  fully  complied  with  all  the  required  condi- 
tions.  In  this,  he  displayed  his  knowledge  of  their 
character;  for,  like  all  warlike  savages,  they  are 
extremely  prone  to  interpret  lenity  and  i  moderation 
into  timidity  and  indecision;  and  he  who,  from 
good  nature  or  mistaken  philanthropy,  is  betrayed 
into  yielding  a  point  which  he  has  before  insisted 
on,  may  have  deep  cause  to  rue  it.  As  their  own 
dealings  with  their  enemies  are  not  leavened  with 
such  humanizing  ingredients,  they  are  seldom  able 
to  comprehend  them;  and  to  win  over  an  Indian 
foe  by  kindness  should  only  be  attempted  by  one 
who  has  already  given  indubitable  proofs  of  power, 
and  established  an  unanswerable  claim  to  respect 
and  obedience. 

But  now,  when  every  condition  was  satisfied,  such 
inexorable     rigor    was    no    longer    demande''  :        ' 
having   convoked   the    chiefs    in   the    sylvan    ci  ; 
house.   Bouquet   signified  his    willingnesb    to   receive 
their  offers  of  peace.  » 

"  Brother,"  began  the  Indian  orator,  •'  with  this 
belt  of  wampum  I  dispel  the  black  cloud  that  has 
hung  so  long  over  our  heads,  that  the  sunshine  of 
peace  may  once  more  descend  to  warm  and  gladden 
us.  I  wipe  the  tears  from  your  eyes,  and  condole 
with  you  on  the  loss  of  your  brethren  who  have 
l)crishcd  in  this  war.  I  gather  their  bones  together, 
and  cover  them  deep  in  the  earth,  that  the  sight  of 
them  may  no  longer  bring  sorrow  to  your  hearts; 
and  I  scatter  dry  leaves  over  tlic  spot,  that  it  may 
depart  forever  from  memory. 

"  The  patli  of  peace,  wliich  once  ran  between 
your  dwellings  and  mine,  has  of  late  been  chcked 
with   thorns   and  briers,  so   that  no  one  could    }ass 


NTRY.    [Cha-p.  XXVII. 

le  required  condi- 
lowledge  of  their 
lavages,   they  are 

and  i  moderation 
L  he  who,  from 
ropy,  is  betrayed 
IS  before  insisted 
t.  As  their  own 
ot  leavened  with 

are   seldom  able 

over  an  Indian 
ittempted  by  one 

proofs  of  power, 
claim    to    respect 

vas  satisfied,  such 

demandc'i  :        ] 

e    sylvan    ci  is 

ngnesb    to    receive 

rator,  •'  with  this 
ik  cloud  that  has 
t  the  sunshine  of 
i^arm  and  gladden 
eyes,  and  condole 
•ethren  who  have 
;ir  bones  together, 
that  the  sight  of 
'  to  your  hearts; 
spot,  that   it  may 

ncc  ran  between 
late  been  chcked 
10  one  could    )ass 


Chap.  XXVIL]    SPEECH,  OF  THE  INDIAN  ORATOR. 


499 


that  way;  and  we  have  both  almost  forgotten  that 
such  a  path  had  ever  been.  I  now  clear  away  all 
these  obstructions,  and  make  a  broad,  smooth  road, 
so  that  you  and  I  may  freely  visit  each  other,  as 
our  fathers  used  to  do.  I  kindle  a  great  council- 
fire,  whose  smoke  shall  rise  to  heaven,  in  view  of 
all  the  nations,  while  you  and  I  sit  together  and 
smoke  the  peace-pipe  at  its  blaze."  ^  ?  ?/sv ^  »^ -^  - 
In  this   strain,  the  orator  of  each  tribe,  in  turn, 


1   An  Indian  council,  on  solemn 
occasions,  is    always   opened   with 
preliminary  forms,  sufficiently  weari- 
Bome  and  tedious,  but  made  indis- 
pensable by  immemorial  custom ;  for 
this  people  are  as  much  bound  by 
tlieir   conventional    usages    as    the 
most  artificial  children  of  civiliza- 
tion.   The  forms  are  varied  to  some 
extent,  according  to  the  imagination 
and  taste  of  the  speaker;  but  in  all 
essential  respects  they  are  closely 
similar,  throughout  the  tribes  of  Al- 
gonquin and  Iroquois  lineage.    They 
run  somewhat  as  follows,  each  sen- 
tence being  pronounced  with  great 
solemnity,  and  confirmed  by  the  de- 
livery of  a  wampum  belt.    Brothers, 
with  this  belt  I  open  your  ears  that 
you  may  hear — I  remove  grief  and 
sorrow  from  your  hearts  —  I  draw 
from   your   feet  the    thorns   which 
have  pierced  them  as  you  journeyed 
thither — I  clean  the  seats  of  the 
council-house,  that  you  may  sit  at 
ease  —  I  wash  your  head  and  body, 
that  your  spirits  may  be  refreshed  — 
I  condole  with  you  on  the  loss  of 
tlie  friends  who  have  died  since  we 
last   met  —  I  wipe    out   any  blood 
which  may  have  been  spilt  between 
us.    This  ceremony,  which,  by  the 
delivery  of  so  many  belts  of  wam- 
pum, entailed  no  smull  expense,  was 
never  used  except  on  the  most  im- 
portant occasions  ;  and  at  the  coun- 
cils with  Colonel  Bouquet,  the  angry 
warriors  seem  wholly  to  have  dis- 
pensed with  it. 

An  Indian  orator  is  provided  with 


a  stock  of  metaphors,  which  he  al- 
ways makes  use  of  for  the  expres- 
sion of  certain  ideas.  Thus,  to 
make  war  is  to  raise  the  hatchet ;  to 
make  peace  is  to  take  hold  of  the 
chain  of  friendship ;  to  deliberate  ia 
to  kindle  the  council-fire;  to  cover 
the  bones  of  the  dead  is  to  make 
reparation  and  gain  forgiveness  for 
the  act  of  killing  them.  A  state  of 
war  and  disaster  is  typified  by  a 
black  cloud;  a  state  of  peace,  by 
bright  sunshine,  or  by  an  open  path 
between  the  two  nations. 

The  orator  seldom  speaks  without 
careful  premeditation  of  what  he  is 
about  to  say;  and  his  memory  is 
refreshed  by  the  belts  of  wampum, 
which  he  delivers  after  every  clause 
in  his  harangue,  as  a  pledge  of  the 
sincerity  and  truth  of  his  words. 
These  belts  are  carefully  preserved 
by  the  hearers,  as  a  substitute  for 
written  records ;  a  use  for  which 
they  are  the  better  adapted,  as  they 
are  often  worked  with  hieroglyphics 
expressing  the  meaning  they  are 
designed  to  preserve.  Thus,  at  a 
treaty  of  peace,  the  principal  belt 
often  bears  the  figures  of  an  Indian 
and  a  white  man  holding  a  chain 
between  them. 

For  the  nature  and  uses  of  wam- 
pum, see  note,  ante,  p.  1G5. 

Though  a  good  memory  is  an  es- 
sential (lualification  of  an  Indian  ora- 
tor, it  would  be  unjust  not  to  observe 
that  strilving  outbursts  of  spontaneous 
eloquence  have  sometimes  proceeded 
from  their  lips. 


)■:'.  : 


500 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Crap.  XXVU. 


'U 


expressed  the  purpose  of  his  people  to  lay  down 
their  amis,  and  live,  for  the  future,  in  friendship  .ith 
the  English.  Every  deputation  received  a  sejir^rate 
audience,  and  the  succesaive  conferences  were  thus 
extended  through  several  days.  To  each  and  all, 
Bouquet  made  a  similar  reply,  in  words  to  the  fol- 
lowing  effect:  — 

"  By  your  full  compliance  with  the  conditions 
which  I  imposed,  you  have  satisfied  me  of  your  sin- 
cerity, and  I  now  receive  you  once  more  as  brethren. 
The  king,  my  master,  has  commissioned  me,  not  to 
make  treaties  for  him,  but  to  fight  his  battles;  and 
though  I  now  offer  you  peace,  it  is  not  in  my  power 
to  settle  its  precise  terms  and  conditions.  For  this, 
I  refer  you  to  Sir  William  Johnson,  his  majesty's 
agent  and  superintendent  for  Indian  affairs,  who  will 
settle  with  you  the  articles  of  peace,  and  determine 
eveiy  thing  in  relation  to  trade.  Two  things,  how- 
ever, I  shall  insist  on.  And,,  first,  you  are  to  give 
hostages,  as  security  that  you  will  preserve  good 
faith,  and  send,  without  delay,  a  deputation  of  yom 
chiefs  to  Sir  William  Johnson.  In  the  next  place, 
these  chiefs  are  to  be  fully  empowered  to  treat  in 
behalf  of  your  nation,  and  you  will  bind  yourselves 
to  adhere  strictly  to  every  thing  they  shall  agree 
upon  in  your  behalf"  ^     v 

These  demands  were  readily  complied  with.  Hos- 
tages were  given,  and  chiefs  appointed  for  the  em- 
bassy; and  now,  for  the  first  time,  Bouquet,  to  the 
great  relief  of  the  Indians,  —  for  they  doubted  his 
intentions,  —  extended  to  them  the  hand  of  friend- 
ship, which  he  had  so  long  withheld.  A  prominent 
chief  of  tlie  Delawares,  too  proud  to  sue  for  peace, 
hud  refused  to  attend  the  council,  on  which  Bouquet 


'RY.    [Chap.  XXVU. 


CHAP.XXVn.]    THE  SHAWANOES— THEIR  HATTGHTmESS.    501 

ordered  him  to  be  deposed,  and  a  successor,  of 
a  less  obdurate  spirit,  installed  in  his  place.  The 
Shawanoes  were  the  last  of  the  tribes  admitted  to  a 
hearing;  and  the  demeanor  of  their  orator  clearly 
evinced  the  haughty  reluctance  -with  which  he 
stooped  to  ask  peace  of  \M  mortal  enemies.        --^ - 

"When  you  came  amdng  us,"  such  were  his  con- 
cluding words,  "you  came  with  a  hatchet  raised  to 
strike  us.  We  now  take  it  from  your  hand,  and 
throw  it  up  to  the  Great  Spirit,  that  he  may  do 
with  it  what  shall  seem  good  in  his  sight.  We 
hope  that  you,  who  are  warriors,  will  take  hoid  of 
the  chain  of  friendship  which  we  now  extend  to 
you.  We,  who  are  also  warriors,  will  take  hold  as 
you  do,  and  we  will  think  no  more  of  war,  in  pity 
for  our  women,  children,  and  old  men."^ 

On  this  occasion,  the  Shawanoe  chiefs,  expressing 
a  hope  for  a  renewal  of  the  friendship  which  in 
former  years  had  subsisted  between  their  people  and 
the  English,  displayed  the  dilapidated  parchments  of 
several  treaties  made  between  their  ancestors  and  the 
descendants  of  William   Penn  —  documents,  some  of 


3 


"p** 


\    .':'-Y 


"%" 


1  The  Shawanoe  speaker,  in  ex- 
pressing his  intention  of  disarming 
his  enemy  by  laying  aside  his  own 
designs  of  war,  makes  use  of  an  un- 
iv<ual  metaphor.  To  bury  the  hatch^ 
(I  IS  the  figure  in  common  use  on 
such  occasions,  but  he  adopts  a  form 
of  speech  which  ho  regarcb  as  morf) 
significant  and  emphatic,  —  that  of 
throwing  it  up  to  the  Great  Spirit. 
Unwilling  to  confess  that  he  yields 
through  fear  of  the  enemy,  he  pro- 
fesses to  wish  for  peace  merely  for 
the  sake  of  his  women  and  cliildrcn. 

At  the  great  council  at  Lancaster, 
in  1762,  a  chief  of  the  Oneidas, 
anxious  to  express,  in  tlio  strongest 


terms,  the  firmness  of  the  peace 
which  had  been  concluded,  had  re- 
course to  the  following  singular 
figure  :  "In  the  country  of  the 
Oneidas  there  is  a  great  pine-tree, 
so  huge  and  old  thtt  half  its 
branches  are  dead  with  time.  I  tear 
it  up  by  the  roots,  and,  looking  down 
into  the  hole,  I  eee  a  dark  stream  of 
water,  flowing  with  a  strong  current, 
deep  under  ground.  Into  this  stream 
I  flmg  the  hatchet,  and  the  current 
sweeps  it  away,  no  man  knows 
whither.  Then'  I  plant  the  tree 
again  where  it  stood  before,  and 
thus  this  war  will  '.o  ended  for- 
ever." 


5ii 

'■;i 


502 


BOUQUET  m  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XlCVn. 


which  had  been  preserved  among  their  for  more 
than  ^lalf  a  century,  with  all  the  scrupulous  respect 
they  lire  prone  to  exhibit  for  such  ancestral  records. 
They  were  told,  that,  since  they  had  not  delivered 
all  their  prisoners,  they  could  scarcely  expect  to 
meet  the  same  indiUgence  which  had  been  extended 
to  their  brethren;  but  that,  nevertheless,  in  full 
belief  of  their  sinctnty,  the  English  would  grant 
them  peace,  on  condition  of  their  promising  to  sur- 
render the  remaining  captives  early  in  the  following 
spring,  and  giving  up  six  of  their  chiefs  as  hostages. 
These  conditions  were  agreed  to;  and  it  may  be 
added  that,  at  the  appointed  time,  all  the  prisoners 
who  had  been  left  in  their  hands,  to  the  number  of 
a  hundred,  were  brought  in  to  Fort  Pitt,  and  deliv- 
ered up  to  the  commanding  officer.*  i  ,m^:M 
Fro^i  the  hard  formalities  and  rigid  self-control  of 
an  Indian  council-house,  where  the  struggles  of  fear, 
rage,  and  hatred  were  deep  buried  beneath  a  surface 
of  iron  immobility,  we  turn  to  scenes  of  a  widely 
different  nature;  an  exhibition  of  mingled  and  con- 
trasted passions,  more  worthy  the  pen  of  the  dram- 
atist than  of  the  historian,  who,  restricted  to  the 
meagre  outline  of  recorded  authority,  can  reflect  but 
a  feeble  image  of  the  truth.  In  the  ranks  of  the 
Pennsylvania  troops,  and  among  the  Virginia  rifle- 
men, were  the  fathers,  brothers,  and  husbands  of 
those  whose  rescue  from  captivity  was  a  chief  object 
of  the  march.  Ignorant  what  had  befallen  them, 
and    doubtful    whether    they    were    yet    among    the 


'  Besides  the  authorities  before  accompanied  him  have  been  exam- 
mentioned  in  relation  to  these  trans-  ined.  For  General  Gage's  summary 
actions,  several  manuscript  letters  of  the  results  of  the  campaign,  see 
from  Bouquet  and  the  officers  who  Appendix,  F. 


TRY,    [Chap.  XXVII. 


Chap.  XXVII.]     SCENES  AT  THE  liNGLISH  CAMP. 


503 


living,  these  men  had  joined  the  army,  in  the  fever- 
ish hope  of  winning  them  back  to  home  and  civil- 
ization.    Perhaps  those  whom  they  sought  had  per- 
ished by  the  elaborate  torments  of  the  stake ;  perhaps 
by  the  more  merciful  hatchet;   or  perhaps  they  still 
dragged  out  a  w_:tched  life  in  the  midst  of  a  savage 
horde.     There  were  in  prances   in  which  whole  fam- 
ilies  had   been   carried   off  at   once.     The   old,    the 
sick,    or   the    despairing,   had   been   tomahawked   as 
useless  encumbrances,  while  the  rest,  pitilessly  forced 
asunder,  were  scattered  through  every  quarter  of  the 
^vildemess.     It    was    a    strange    and    moving    night, 
when   troop   after  troop  of  prisoners  arrived  in   suc- 
cession—  the  meeting  of  husbands  with  wives,  and 
fathers  with  children,  the  reunion  of  broken  families, 
long  separated  in  a  disastrous  captivity;   and  on  the 
other  hand,  the  agonies  of  those  who  learned  tidings 
of  death   and  horror,  or  groaned  under  the  torture 
of  protracted     suspense.     Women,    frantic    between 
hope   and  fear,  were  rushing  hither  and  thither,  in 
search    of   those  whose   tender   limbs   had,   perhaps, 
long   since   fattened    the   cubs    of  the  she  wolf;   or 
were   pausmg   in    an    agony    of  doubt,   before   some 
sunburnt  young  savage,  who,  startled  at  the  haggard 
apparition,    shrank   from   his    forgotten    parent,    and 
clung   to   the   tawny  breast   of  his  adopted  mother. 
Others  were   divided   between  delight  and  anguish: 
on  the  one  hand,  the  joy  of  an  unexpected  recogni- 
tion;  and  on  the  other,  the  misery  of  realized  fears, 
or  the  more  intol  arable  pangs  of  doubts  not  yet  re- 
solved.    Of  all   th?   spectators   of  this  tragic  drama, 
few  were  obdurate  enough  to  stand  unmoved.     The 
roughest  soldiers  felt  the   contagious   sympathy,  and 
softened  into  unwonted  tenderness. 


wt''':\\ 


m 


':■'! 


■S'l 


\n 


504 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVn, 


Among  the  children  brought  in  for  surrender, 
there  were  some,  who,  captured  several  years  before, 
as  early,  perhaps,  as  the  French  war,  had  lost  eveiy 
recollection  of  friends  and  home.  Terrified  by  the 
novel  sights  around  them,  by  the  flash  and  gUtter 
of  arms,  and,  above  all,  by  the  strange  complexion 
of  the  pale-faced  warriors,  they  screamed  and  struggled 
lustily  when  consigned  to  the  hands  of  their  rela- 
tives. There  were  yoimg  women,  too,  who  had 
become  the  partners  of  Indian  husbands,  and  now, 
with  all  their  hybrid  offspring,  were  led  reluctantly 
into  the  presence  of  fathers  or  brothers,  whose 
images  were  almost  blotted  from  their  memory. 
They  stood  agitated  and  bewilderea,  the  revival  of 
old  affections,  and  the  rush  of  dormant  memories, 
painfully  contending  with  more  recent  attachments, 
and  the  shame  of  their  real  or  fancied  disgrace; 
while  their  Indian  lords  looked  on,  scarcely  less 
moved  than  they,  yet  hardening  themselves  with 
savage  stoicism,  and  standing  in  the  midst  of  their 
enemies,  imperturbable  as  statues  of  jronze.  These 
women  were  compelled  to  return  with  their  children 
to  the  settlements;  yet  they  all'  did  so  with  reluc- 
tance, and  several  afterwards  made  their  escape, 
eagerly  hastening  back  to  their  warrior  husbands, 
and  the  toUs  and  vicissitudes  of  an  Indian  wigwam ' 


1  Penn.  Hist  Col.  267.  Haz.  Pa. 
Reg.  IV.  3fX).  M'Culloch,  Narra- 
tive.    M'Culloch    was    one    of   the 

i)risoners  surrendered  to  Bouquet 
rlis  narrative  first  appeared  in  a  pam- 
phlet form,  and  has  since  been  repub- 
lished in  the  Incidents  of  Border 
Warfare,  and  other  similar  collec- 
tions. The  autobiog^phy  of  Mary 
Jemison,  a  woman  captured  by  the 
Senccas  during  the  French  war,  and 
twice  married  among  them,  contains 


an  instance  of  attachment  to  Indian 
life  similar  to  those  mentioned 
above.  After  the  conclusion  of  hos- 
tilities, learning  that  she  was  to  be 
given  up  to  the  whites,  in  accordance 
with  a  treaty,  she  escaped  into  the 
woods  with  her  half-breed  children, 
and  remained  hidden,  in  great  dismay 
and  agitation,  until  the  search  was 
over.  She  lived  to  an  advanced  age, 
but  never  lost  her  attachment  to  Qie 
Indian  life. 


UNTKY.    [CHAP.XXVn. 

in    for    surrender, 

veral  years  before, 

^ar,  had  lost  every 

Terrified  by  the 

flash   and   glitter 
itrange  complexion 
amed  and  struggled 
mds   of  their  rela- 
in,    too,    who    had 
lusbands,  and  now, 
ere  led  reluctantly 
»r    brothers,    whose 
3n>     their    memory, 
rett,  the  revival  of 
dormant   memories, 
recent  attachments, 
r  fancied   disgrace; 
l    on,   scarcely  less 
g    themselves   with 

the  midst  of  their 
i  of  ""jronze.     These 

with  their  children 

did  so  with  reluc- 
made  their  escape, 
■  warrior  husbnnds, 
an  Indian  wigwam^' 

nee  of  attachment  to  Indian 
lilar  to  those  mentioned 
After  the  conclusion  of  hos- 
earning  that  she  was  to  be 
» to  the  whites,  in  accordance 
treaty,  she  escaped  into  the 
rith  her  half-breed  children, 
lined  hidden,  in  great  dismay 
tation,  until  the  search  was 
Ihe  lived  to  an  advanced  age, 
ST  lost  her  attachment  to  the 
ife. 


Chap.  XXVII.]    SCENES  AT   THE  ENGLISH  CAMP. 


505 


Day    after    day   brought   fresh    renewals    of  these 
scenes,  deepening  in  interest   as  they   drew   towards 
their   close.     A   few   individual   incidents   have  been 
recorded  and  preserved.     A  young  Virginian,  robbed 
of  his   wife  but  a  few  months  before,   had  volun- 
teered   in    the   expedition   with   the   faint    hope  of 
recovering  her,  and,  after  long  suspense,  had  recog- 
nized her  among  a  troop  of  prisoners,  bearing  in  her 
arms   a   child   bom   during  her  captivity.     But   the 
joy  of  the  meeting  was  bitterly  alloyed  by  the  loss 
of  a  former  child,  not   two  years  old,  captured  with 
the  mother,  but   soon   taken  from  her,  and   carried, 
she  could  not  tell  whither.     Days  passed   on;   they 
could  learn   no   tidings  of  its  fate,  and  the   mother, 
harrowed  with  terrible  imaginations,  was  almost  driven 
to  despair,  when,  at  length,  she  discovered  her  child 
m  the  arms   of  an  Indian  warrior,  and  snatched  it 
with  an  irrepressible  cry  of  transport.         "    ' 

When  the  army,  on  its  homeward  march,  reached 
the  town  of  Carlisle,  those  who  had  been  unable  to 
follow  the  expedition  came  thither  in  numbers,  to 
inquire  for  the  friends  they  had  lost.  Among  the 
rest  was  an  old  woman,  whose  daughter  had  been 
carried  off  nine  years  before.  In  the  crowd  of 
female  captives,  she  discovered  one  in  whose  wild 
and  swarthy  features  she  discerned  the  altered  linea- 
ments of  her  child;  but  the  gu'l,  who  had  almost 
forgotten  her  native  tongue,  returned  no  answering 
sign  of  recognition  to  her  eager  words,  and  the  old 
woman  bitterly  complained  that  the  daughter,  whom 
she  had  so  often  sung  to  sleep  on  her  knee,  had 
forgotten  her  in  her  old  age.  The  humanity  of 
Bouquet  suggested  an  expedient.  '*  Sing  the  song 
that  you  used  to  sing  to  her  when  a  child."  The 
<S4  QQ 


H 


t 


t 


506 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


old  woman  obeyed,  and  a  sudden  start,  a  look  of 
bewilderment,  and  a  passionate  flood  of  tears,  removed 
every  doubt,  and  restored  the  long-lost  daughter  to 
her  mother's  arms.' 

The  tender  affections  by  no  means  form  a  salient 
feature  in  the  Indian  character.  They  hold  them  in 
contenipt,  and  scorn  every  manifestation  of  them; 
yet,  on  this  occasion,  they  would  not  be  repressed, 
and  the  human  heart  betrayed  itself,  though  throb- 
bing under  a  breastplate  of  ice.  None  of  the  ordi- 
nary signs  of  emotion,  neither  tears,  words,  nor 
looks,  declared  how  greatly  they  were  moved.  It 
was  by  their  kindness  and  solicitude,  by  their  atten- 
tion to  the  wants  of  the  captives,  by  their  offers  of 
furs,  garments,  the  choicest  articles  of  food,  and 
every  thing  which  in  their  eyes  seemed  luxury,  that 
they  displayed  their  sorrow  at  parting  from  their 
adopted  relatives  and  friends.''  Some  among  them 
went  much  farther,  and  asked  permission  to  follow 
the  army  on  its  homeward  march,  that  they  might 
hunt  for  the  captives,  and  supply  them  with  better 
food  than  the  military  stores  could  furnish.  A 
young  Seneca  warrior  had  become  deeply  enamoured 
of  a  Virginian  girl.  At  great  risk  of  his  life,  he 
accompanied  the  troops  far  within  the  limits  of  the 
settlements,  and,  at  every  night's  encampment,  ap- 
proaching the  quarters  of  the  captives  as  closely  as 
the  sentinels  would  permit,  he  sat  watching,  with 
patient  vigilance,  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  his  lost 
mistress. 

1  Ordinances  of  the  Borough  of  meant  to  apply  solely  to  the  squaws. 
Carlisle,  Jlppendix.  Penn.  Hist  Coll.  A  warrior,  who,  under  the  circuni- 
2G7.  stances,  should  have  displayed  sucb 

2  Ilutchins  speaks  of  the  Indians  emotion,  would  have  been  disgraced 
"  shedding  torrents  of  tears."    This  forever. 

iii  either  a  flourish  of  rhetoric,  or  is 


^TBY.    [CiiA.r.  XXVII. 


CHAP.XXVn.]    PRISONERS  AMONG  THE  INDIANS. 


507 


The  Indian  women,  whom  no  idea  of  honor  com- 
pels to  wear  an  iron  mask,  were  far  from  emulating 
the  frigid  aspect  of  their  lords.  All  day  they  ran 
wailing  through  the  camp;  and,  when  night  came, 
the  hills  and  woods  resounded  with  their  dreary  lam- 
entations.^        ;    .         I    :,        j',  '?   i;..'     </  If    ■'    \    '      .  • 

The  word  prisoner^  as  applied  to  captives  taken  by 
the  Indians,  is  a  misnomer,  and  conveys  a  wholly 
false  impression  of  their  situation  and  treatment. 
When  the  vengeance  of  the  conquerors  is  sated,  when 
they  have  shot,  stabbed,  burned,  or  beaten  to  death, 
enough  to  satisfy  the  shades  of  their  departed  rela- 
tives, they  usually  treat  those  who  survive  their  wrath 
with  moderation  and  humanity,  often  adopting  them 
to  supply  the  place  of  lost  brothers,  husbands,  or 
children,  whose  names  are  given  to  the  successors 
thus  substituted  in  their  place.  By  a  formal  cere- 
mony, the  white  blood  is  washed  from  their  veins, 
and  they  are  regarded  thenceforth  as  members  of  the 
tribe,  faring  equally  with  ^.he  rest  in  prosperity  or 
adversity,  in  famine  or  abimdance.  When  children 
are  adopted  in  this  manner  by  Indian  women,  they 
nurture  them  with  the  same  tenderness  and  indul- 
gence which  they  extend,  in  a  r  ;markable  degree,  to 
their  own  offspring;   and  such  young  women  as  will 


■sia* 


■1** 


1  The  outcries  of  the  equaws,  on 
fluch  occasions,  would  put  to  shame 
an  Irish  death-howl.  The  writer  was 
once  attached  to  a  large  band  of  In- 
dians, who,  being  on  the  march,  ar- 
rived, a  little  after  nightfall,  at  a  spot 
where,  not  long  before,  a  party  of 
their  young  men  had  been  killed  by 
the  enomy.  The  women  instantly 
raised  a  most  astounding  clamor, 
some  two  hundred  voices  joining  in 
a  discord  as  xvild  and  dismal  as  the 
Bhrieking  of  tlte  damned  in  Dante's 


Inferno;  while  some  of  the  chief 
mourners  gashed  their  bodies  and 
limbs  with  knives,  uttering,  mean- 
while, most  piteous  lamentations.  A 
few  days  later,  returning  to  the 
same  encampment  after  darkness  had 
closed  in,  a  strange  and  startling  ef- 
fect was  produced  by  the  prolonged 
wailings  of  several  women,  who  were 
pacing  the  neighboring  hills,  lament- 
ing tlie  death  of  a  child,  killed  by  tlie 
bite  of  a  rattlesnake. 


<iii 


608 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVII. 


r 


►■ 
t 


i 

i 

1 

( 

'  1 


not  marry  an  Indian  husband  are  treated  with  a 
singular  forbearance,  in  which  superstition,  natural 
temperament,  and  a  sense  of  right  and  justice  rnay 
all  claim  a  share.  The  captive,  unless  ho  excites 
suspicion  by  his  conduct,  or  exhibits  peculiar  contu- 
macy, is  left  with  no  other  restraint  than  his  own 
free  will.  The  warrior  who  captiu'cd  him,  or  to  whom 
he  was  assigned  in  the  division  of  the  spoil,  some- 
times claims,  it  is  true,  a  certain  right  of  property 
in  him,  to  tin  xclusion  of  others ;  but  this  claim  is 
soon  forgotten,  and  seldom  exercised  to  the  incon- 
venicnce  of  the  captive,  who  has  no  other  prison  than 
the  earth,  the  air,  and  the  forest.^  Five  hundred 
miles  of  wilderness,  beset  with  difficulty  and  danger, 
arc  the  sole  bars  to  his  escape,  should  he  desire  to 
effect  it;  but,  strange  as  it  may  appear,  this  wish  is 
apt  to  expire  in  his  heart,  and  he  often  remains  to 
the  end  of  his  life  a  contented  denizen  of  the  woods. 
Among  the  captives  brought  in  for  delivery  were 
some  bound  fast  to  prevent  their  escape;  and  many 
others,  who,  amid  the  general  tumult  of  joy  and  sor- 
row, sat  sullen  and  scowlini,',  angry  that  they  were 
forced  to  abandon  the  wild  license  of  the  forest  for 
the  irksome  restraints  of  society.''  Thus,  to  look  baek 
with  a  fond  longing  to  inhospitable  deserts,  wlicrc 
men,  beasts,  and  Nature  herself,  seem  arrayed  in  anns, 
and  where  ease,  security,  and  all  that  civilization 
reckons  among  the  goods  of  life,  are  alike  cut  off, 
may  appear  to  argue  some  strange  perversity  or  moral 

'  The  captives  among  the  Shawa-  death,  fearing   that,    in   the  attack 

noes  of  tlie  Scioto  had  most  of  them  which  tlicy  meditated,  tlic  captives 

been   recently  taken ;   and    only  a  wonld  naturally  take  part  with  tiicir 

Bmali    part    had  gone  through  the  countrymen. 

ceremony  of  adoption.    Hence  it  was        ~  Ilntchina,  Account  of  Bouqucl'a 

that  the  warriors,  in  their  desperation.  Expedition,  ^i). 
formed  the  design  of  putting  tliem  to 


STTRY.    [Chap.  XXVU. 


Ciur.  XXVII.] 


THE  FOREST  LITE. 


509 


malformation.  Yet  such  has  been  the  experience  of 
many  a  sound  and  healthful  mind.  To  him  who 
has  once  tasted  the  reckless  independence,  the  haugh- 
ty self-reliance,  the  sense  of  irresponsible  freedom, 
which  the  forest  life  engenders,  civilization  thenco 
fortli  Hcems  flat  and  stale.  Its  pleasures  are  insipid, 
its  pursuits  wearisome,  its  conventionalities,  duties, 
and  mutual  dependence  alike  tedious  and  disgust- 
ing. The  entrapped  wanderer  grows  fierce  and  rest- 
less, and  pants  for  breathing-room.  His  path,  it 
is  true,  was  choked  with  difficulties,  but  his  body 
and  soul  were  hardened  to  meet  them;  it  was  beset 
with  dangers,  but  these  were  the  very  spice  of  his 
life,  gladdening  his  heart  with  exul.ing  se' "-confi- 
dence, and  sending  the  blood  through  his  vris  with 
a  livelier  current.  Th(;  wilderness,  rough,  hash,  and 
inexorable,  has  charms  more  potent  i  .  .•  cir  seductive 
influence  than  all  the  lures  of  luxury  and  slotli. 
And  often  he  on  whom  it  has  cast  its  magic 
finds  no  heart  to  dissolve  the  spell,  and  remains  a 
wanderer  and  an  Ishmaelite  to  the  hour  of  his 
death.^  .  i 


.'  / 


/     J 


:tt. 


1  Golden,  after  describing  tlio  In- 
dian wars  of  1699,  1700,  concludua 
in  the  following  words :  — 

"  I  shall  finish  this  Part  by  observ- 
ing tliat  notwitlistanding  the  French 
Comniissioncra  took  all  the  Painr 
possible  to  carry  Home  tlie  French 
that  were  Prisoners  witli  the  Five 
Nations,  and  they  had  full  Liberty 
from  the  Indians,  few  of  them  cala 
be  persuaded  to  return.  It  may  be 
thought  that  tliis  was  occasioned  from 
tho  Ilanlsliips  tlioy  had  endured  in 
their  own  Country,  under  a  tyranni- 
cal Govermiient  and  a  barren  Soil. 
But  this  certainly  was  not  the  Rea- 
son, for  the  English  luJ  aa  much 
Difficulty  to  persuade  tl»e  People  Uiat 


had  been  taken  Prisoners  by  the 
French  Indians  to  leave  tho  Indian 
Manner  of  living,  though  no  People 
enjoy  more  Liberty,  and  live  in 
Theater  Plenty  than  the  common  In- 
ir.'ntants  of  New  York  do.  No  Ar- 
guments, no  Intreaties,  nor  Tears  of 
their  Friends  and  Relations,  could 
persuade  many  of  them  to  leave  thei" 
new  Indian  Friends  and  Acquaint- 
ance. Several  of  them  tliat  were  by 
tlie  Caressings  of  their  Relations 
persuaded  to  come  Home,  in  a  little 
Time  grew  tired  of  our  Manner  of 
living,  and  ran  away  to  the  Indiaiib', 
and  ended  their  Days  with  them. 
On  the  other  Hand,  Indian  Children 
have  been  carefully  educated  among 


f-  i 


I  ,f  J    «' 

"t 

:V 
'(1 


^iPI  BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVH. 

There  is  a  chord,  in  the  breasts  of  most  men,  prompt 
to  answer  loudly  or  faintly,  as  the  case  may  be,  to 
such  rude  appeals.  But  there  is  influence  of  another 
sort,  strongest  with  minds  of  the  finest  texture,  yet 
sometimes  holding  a  controlling  power  over  those 
who  neither  acknowledge  nor  suspect  its  workings. 
There  are  few  so  imbruted  by  vice,  so  perverted  by 
art  and  luxury,  as  to  dwell  in  the  closest  presence 
of  Nature,  deaf  to  her  voice  of  melody  and  power, 
untouched  by  the  ennobling  influences  which  mould 
and  penetrate  the  heart  that  has  not  hardened  itself 
against  them.  Into  the  spirit  of  such  an  one  the 
mountain  wind  breathes  its  own  freshness,  and  the 
midsummer  tempest,  as  it  rends  the  forest,  pours  its 
own  fierce  energy.  His  thoughts  flow  with  the 
placid  stream  of  the  broad,  deep  river,  or  dance  in 
light  with  the  sparkling  current  of  the  mountain 
brook.  No  passing  mood  or  fancy  of  his  mind  but 
has  its  image  and  its  echo  in  the  wild  world  around 
him.  There  is  softness  in  the  mellow  air,  the  warm 
sunshine,  and  the  budding  leaves  of  spring;  and  in 
the  forest  flower,  which,  more  delicate  than  the  pam- 
pered offspring  of  gardens,  lifts  its  tender  head 
through  the  refuse  and  decay  of  the  wilderness.  But 
it  is  the  grand  and  heroic  in  the  hearts  of  men 
which  finds  its  worthiest  symbol  and  noblest  inspira- 
tion amid  these  desert  realms,  —  in  the  mountain, 
rearing  its  savage  head  through  cloudy  and  sleet,  or 


the  English,  clothed  and  taught ;  yet, 
I  think,  there  is  not  one  Instance  that 
any  of  these,  after  they  had  Liberty 
to  go  among  their  own  People,  and 
were  come  to  Age,  would  remain 
with  the  English,  but  returned  to 
their  own  Nations,  and  became  as 

innil  nf  Ihn  Tnilinn  lU'nTinAr  /\f*  I  .ifn  na 


those  that  knew  notliing  of  a  civil- 
ized Manner  of  living.  What  I  now 
tell  of  Christian  Prisoners  ainonjr  In- 
dians relates  not  only  to  what  hap- 
Eened  at  the  Conclusion  of  this  War, 
ut  has  been  found  true  on  many 
other  Occasions."  —  Golden,  203. 


[TRY.    [Chap.XXVU. 


CiuP.XXVn.]        RETUEN  OF  THE  EXPEDITION. 


611 


basking  its  majestic  strength  in  the  radiance  of  the 
sinking  sun;  in  the  intenninable  forest,  the  thunder 
booming  over  its  lonely  waste,  the  whirlwind  tearing 
through  its  inmost  depths,  or  the  sun  at  length  set- 
ting in  gorgeous  majesty  beyond  its  waves  of  verdure. 
To  the  sick,  the  wearied,  or  the  sated  spirit,  nature 
opens  a  theatre  of  boundless  life,  and  holds  forth  a 
cup  brimming  with  redundant  pleasure.  In  the  other 
joys  of  existence,  fear  is  balanced  against  hope,  and 
satiety  against  delight ;  but  here  one  may  fearlessly 
drink,  gaining,  with  every  draught,  new  vigor  and  a 
heightened  zest,  and  finding  no  di'cgs  of  bitterness 
at  the  bottom. 

Having  accomplished  its  work,  the  army  left  the 
Muskingum,  and,  retracmg  its  former  course,  arrived 
at  Fort  Pitt  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  November. 
The  recovered  captives  were  sent  to  their  respective 
homes  in  Pennsylvania  or  Virginia;  and  the  provin- 
cial troops  disbanded,  not  without  warm  praises  for 
the  hardihood  and  steadiness  with  which  they  had 
met  the  difficulties  of  the  campaign.  The  happy 
issue  of  the  expedition  spread  joy  throughout  the 
country.  At  the  next  session  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Assembly,  one  of  its  first  acts  was  to  pass  a  vote  of 
thanks  to  Colonel  Bouquet,  expressing  in  the  most 
earnest  terms  their  sense  of  his  services  and  personal 
merits,  and  conveying  their  acknowledgments  for  the 
regard  which  he  had  constantly  shown  to  the  civil 
rights  of  the  inhabitants.^  The  Assembly  of  Vir- 
ginia passed  a  similar  vote ;  and  both  houses  con- 
ciured  in  recommending  Bouquet  to  the  king  for 
promotion.     Such  recommendation  proved  superfiuous. 


:r-ti 


*  oCu  iippeiiuiX, 


512 


BOUQUET  IN  THE  INDIAN  COUNTRY.    [Chap.  XXVn. 


for,  on  the  first  news  of  his  success,  Bouquet  had 
boen  appomted  to  the  rank  of  brigadier,  and  the 
command  of  the  southern  department.  "And,"  con- 
cludes Hutchins,  the  chronicler  of  the  campaign,  "as 
he  is  rendered  as  dear  by  his  priyate  virtues  to 
those  who  have  the  honor  of  his  more  intimate  ac- 
quaintance as  he  is  by  his  military  services  to  the 
public,  it  is  hoped  he  may  long  continue  among  us, 
where  his  experienced  abilities  will  enable  him,  and 
his  love  of  the  English  constitution  entitle  him,  to 
fill  any  future  trust  to  which  his  majesty  may  be 
pleased  to  call  h:'m."  This  hope  was  not  destined 
to  fulfilment.  Within  three  years  after  liis  return 
from  the  Muskingum,  he  was  attacked  with  a  fever 
at  Pensacola,  which  closed,  by  a  prtmature  death, 
the  career  of  a  gallant  soldier  and  a  generous  man. 
The  Delawares  and  Shawanoes,  mindfid  of  theh  en- 
gagement and  of  the  hostages  which  they  had  given 
to  keep  it,  sent  their  deputies,  within  the  appointed 
time,  to  Sir  William  Johnson,  who  concluded  a  treaty 
with  them,  stijiuhtting,  among  the  other  terms,  that 
they  should  grant  free  passage  through  their  comitry 
to  English  troops  and  travellers;  that  they  should 
make  full  restitution  for  the  goods  taken  from  the 
traders  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  war;  and  that 
they  should  aid  their  triumphant  enemies  in  the  dif- 
ficult task  which  yet  remained  to  be  accomplished 
—  that  of  taking  possession  of  the  Illinois,  and  oc- 
cupying its  posts  and  settlements  with  British  troops.' 


*  MS.  Johnson  Papers. 


FRY.    [CHAP.XXVn. 


'■'■•.'i    '\.A    ■■■-. 


.-•";•      VA 


(..  I  ■ 


'fC 


:        CHAPTER    XXVIII. 

;  f  ^  THE  ILLINOIS. 


We  turn  to  a  region  of  which,  as  yet,  we  have 
caught  but  transient  glimpses ;  a  region  which  to 
our  forefathers  seemed  remote  and  strange,  as  to  us 
the  mountain  strongholds  of  the  Apaches,  or  the 
wastes  of  farthest  Oregon.  The  country  of  the  Illi- 
nois was  chiefly  embraced  within  the  boundaries  of 
tlio  state  which  now  retains  the  name.  Thitherward, 
from  the  east,  the  west,  and  the  north,  three  mighty 
rivers  rolled  their  tributary  waters;  while  countless 
smaller  streams  —  small  only  in  comparison — trav- 
ersed the  land  with  a  watery  network,  impregnating 
the  warm  soil  with  exuberant  fecundity.  From  the 
eastward,  the  Ohio — La  Belle  Riviere — pursued  its 
windings  for  more  than  a  thousand  miles.  The 
Mississippi  descended  from  the  distant  north;  while 
from  its  fountains  in  the  west,  three  thoustibi 
miles  away,  the  Missouri  poured  its  torrent  towurds 
the  same  common  centre.  Born  among  mountains, 
trackless  even  now,  except  by  the  adventurous 
footstep  of  the  trapper, — nurtured  amid  the  howl- 
ing of  beasts  and  the  war-cries  of  savages,  never 
silent  in  that  wilderness, — it  holds  its  angry  course 
through  sun-scorclicd  deserts,  among  towers  and 
palaces,  the  architecture  of  no  human  hand,  among 
lodges  of  barbarian  hordes,  and  herds  of  bison 
66 


-J'  , 


mm  i 

mm  ^ 


514 


THE  ILLINOIS. 


[CuAP.  XXVHL 


blaclicning  the  prairie  to  the  horizon.  Fierce,  reck- 
less, headstrong,  exulting  in  its  tumultuous  force, 
it  plays  a  thousand  freaks  of  wanton  power;  bearing 
away  forests  from  its  shores,  and  planting  them,  with 
roots  uppermost,  in  its  quicksands;  sweeping  off 
islands,  and  rebuilding  them;  frothing  and  raging  in 
foam  and  whirlpool,  and,  again,  gliding  with  dwindled 
current  along  its  sandy  channel.  At  length,  dark 
wdtli  uncurbed  fury,  it  pours  its  muddy  tide  into  the 
reluctant  Mississippi.  That  majestic  river,  drawing 
life  from  the  pure  fountains  of  the  north,  wandering 
among  emerald  prairies  and  wood-crowned  bluffs, 
loses  all  its  earlier  charm  with  this  imhallowetl 
union.  At  first,  it  shrinks  as  with  repugnance,  and 
along  the  same  channel  the  two  streams  flow  side 
by  side,  with  unmingled  ^yatcrs.  But  the  disturb- 
ing power  prevails  at  length;  and  the  united  tor- 
rent bears  onward  in  its  might,  boiling  up  from 
the  bottom,  whirling  in  many  a  vortex,  flooding  its 
shores  with  a  malign  deluge  fraught  with  pestilence 
and  fever,  and  burying  forests  in  its  depths,  to  in- 
anare  the  heedless  voyager.  Mightiest  among  rivers, 
it  is  the  connecting  link  of  adverse  climates  and 
contrasted  races;  and  while  at  its  noithern  source 
the  fur-clad  Indian  shivers  in  the  cold, — where  it 
mingles  with  the  ocean,  the  growth  of  the  tropics 
springs  along  its  banks,  and  the  panting  negro  cools 
his  limbs  in  its  refreshing  waters. 

To  these  great  rivers  and  their  tributary  streams 
the  country  of  the  Illinois  owed  its  wealth,  its 
grassy  prairies,  and  the  stately  Avoods  that  flour- 
ished on  its  deep,  rich  soil.  This  prolific  land 
teemed  with  life.  It  was  a  liuntor's  paradise.  Deer 
grazed  on   its   meadows.     The  elk  trooped   in  h.ds, 


[Chap.  XXVHL 


Chap.  XXVIII] 


THE  ILLINOIS. 


615 


like  squadions  of  cavalry.  In  the  still  morning, 
one  might  hear  the  clatter  of  their  antlers  for  half 
a  mile  over  the  dewy  prairie.  Countless  bison 
roamed  the  plains,  filing  in  grave  proceejion  to 
drink  at  the  rivers,  plunging  and  snorting  among 
the  rapids  and  quicksands,  roiling  their  huge  bulk 
on  the  grass,  or  rushing  upon  each  other  in  hot  en- 
counter, like  champions  under  shield.  The  wildcat 
glared  from  the  thicket ;  the  raccoon  thrust  his 
furry  countenance  from  the  hollow  tree,  and  the 
opossum  swung,  head  downwards,  from  the  over- 
hanging   bough. 

With  ihe  opening  spring,  when  the  forests  are 
budding  into  leaf,  and  the  prairies  gemmed  with 
flowers;  when  a  warm,  faint  haze  rests  upon  the 
landscape,  —  then  heart  and  senses  are  inthralled 
with  luxurious  beauty.  The  shrubs  and  wild  fruit- 
trees,  flushed  with  pale  red  blossoms,  and  the  small 
clustering  flowers  of  grape-vines,  which  choke  the 
gigantic  trees  with  Laocoon  writhings,  fill  the  forest 
with  their  rich  perfume.  A  few  days  later,  and  a 
cloud  of  verdure  overshadows  the  land,  while  birds 
innumerable  sing  beneath  its  canopy,  and  brighten 
its  shades  with  their  glancing  hues. 

Yet  this  western  paradise  is  not  free  from  the 
curse  of  Adam.  The  beneficent  sun,  which  kindles 
into  life  so  many  forms  of  i  veliness  and  beauty, 
fail^;  not  to  engender  venom  and  death  from  the  rank 
sUme  of  pestilential  swamp  and  mai'sh.  In  some 
stagnant  pool,  buried  in  the  jungle-like  depths  of 
the  forest,  '/here  the  hot  and  lifeless  water  reeks 
with  exhalations,  the  wa  i-snake  basks  by  he  mar- 
gin, or  winds  his  checkered  length  of  ■  athsome 
beauty    across    the    sleepy    surface.      From    beneath 


^^      it 


'Xi 

M"^ 


516 


THE  ILLINOIS. 


[CnAP.  xxvni. 


the  rotten  carcass  of  some  fallen  tree,  the  moc- 
cason  thrusts  out  his  broad  flat  head,  ready  to 
dart  on  the  intruder.  On  the  dry,  sun-scorched 
prairie,  the  rattlesnake,  a  mox^i  gerierous  enemy,  re- 
poses in  his  spiral  co);..  Ho  scon  is  to  shun  the 
eye  of  day,  as  if  conscious  of  the  ''onor  accorded 
to  his  nimie  by  the  warJiLe  raue,  wi. .»,  jointly  with 
him,  clffUii  lordfhip  o-  r-r  the  land.^  But  some  intru- 
[ilve  fooi  top  analwcs  him  from  hie  tslumbers.  His 
neck  is  arched;  the  \vhite  fanr^s  glc.rm  in  his  dis- 
tended jaws ;  l\m  iwnsM  eyes  dait  rays  of  unutterable 
fierceness;  and  hh  rattltS;  i'  'isiblc  with  then*  quick 
vibration,  ring  the  sha:;)  warning  which  no  man 
will  rashly  contemn. 

«  The  land  thus  prodigal  of  good  and  evil,  so 
remote  from  the  sea,  so  primitive  in  its  aspect,  might 
well  be  deemed  an  undiscovered  region,  ignorant  of 
European  arts;  ytt  it  may  boast  a  colonization  as 
old  as   that  of  many  a  spot   to  which  are  accorded 


1  The  superstitious  veneration 
which  the  Indians  entertain  for  tlie 
rattlesnake  has  been  before  nliuded 
to.  The  Cherokees  christened  him 
by  a  name  which,  being  interpreted, 
8i?nifies  the  brigiu  old  inhabitants,  a 
title  of  affectionate  admiration  of 
"ivhich  his  less  partial  acquaintance 
would  hardly  judge  him  worthy. 

"  Between  the  heads  of  the  north- 
cm  branch  of  the  Lower  Cheerake 
River,  and  the  heads  of  that  of  Tuck- 
aschchee,  winding  rounu  in  a  long 
course  by  the  late  Fort,  Loudon,  and 
afterwards  into  tlie  Mississippi,  there 
is,  both  in  the  nature  and  circum- 
Btauces,  a  great  phenomenon.  Be- 
tween two  high  mountP.in«,  nearly 
covered  witli  old  mossy  r  »  ks  lofty 
cedars  and  pines,  in  thr  >  -jvs  of 
which  the  beams  of  thr  loflect 

a  powerful  heat,  there  ;.,       d  the 


natives  affirm,  some  bright  old  inhab- 
itants, or  rattlesnakes,  of  a  more 
enormous  size  than  is  mentioned  in 
history.  They  are  so  large  and  un- 
wieldy, that  they  take  a  circle  alraos, 
as  wjde  as  their  length,  to  crawl 
round  in  their  shortest  orbit;  but 
bountiful  nature  compensates  the 
heavy  motion  of  their  bodicn ;  tor, 
as  they  say,  no  living  creature  movea 
within  the  reach  or  their  sight,  but 
they  can  draw  it  to  them  ;  whicli  is 
agre«idb!e  to  what  we  observe  through 
the  whole  system  of  animated  beings. 
Nature  endues  them  with  proper  cd- 
pacities  to  sustain  life :  as  they  can- 
not support  themselves  by  thoir 
speiid  or  cunning,  to  sprinff  frorii  >■■■ 
ambuscade,  it  is  needful  they  p*^  •■  Id 
have  the  bewitch: rj  craft  '•■■  \hc'a 
eyes  and  forked  tongues."    -Adair, 


,  * 


•^* 


[Chap.  XXVni. 

tree,  the  moc- 
head,  ready  to 
L'y,  sun-scorched 
:'rou8  enemy,  re- 
:m   to   shun   the 

honor  accorded 
!,•.»,  joiutly  with 
But  some  intru- 

blumbers.  His 
cm  in  his  dis- 
'8  of  unutterable 
with  their  quick 
which  no    man 

di  and  evil,  so 
its  aspect,  might 
ion,  ignorant  of 
colonization  as 
ch  are  accorded 


m 


L^rt:  ■£ 


■')fi»*t  ■ 


,  some  bright  old  inhab- 
ttlesnakes,  of  a  more 
3  than  is  mentioned  in 
ly  are  so  large  and  un- 
liey  take  a  circle  almob, 
their  length,  to  crawl 
ir  shortest  orbit;  but 
;ure  compensates  the 
,  of  their  bodion ;  tor, 
o  living  creature  inovea 
ach  of  their  sight,  but 

7  it  to  them  ;  whicli  is 
'hat  we  observe  through 
[em  of  animated  beings, 

8  them  with  proper  cd- 
Jtain  life :  as  they  can- 

tliemselves    by   thoir 
ling,  to  sprin<j  fixn. 
,  is  needful  they  p^    Id 
ntchirj  craf>  >■■'    ilioir 
led  tongues.'    -Adair, 


.*-*- 


i 


,r*C9IMILC) 

o/' /Jftseirnf/\^?^%i'^  in  tltc 
iLLIiVOLS   C'OUXTRY. 

River  Aiil'sirsippi  Jcc. 


,¥ 


;if^ 


yi 


'St  Mia 
I^MA'ort 


»   a   3  4  j 


^Grniview  *1 
HifSalint 


Si- ale  (jf  Nfiles. 


CuAP.  XXVIII]         ITS  EARLY  COLONIZATION. 


517 


the  scanty  honors   of  an   American   antic[uity.     The 
earhest    settlement    of    Pennsylvania    was    made    in 
1681 ;    the    first    occupation    of    the    Illinois    took 
place  in  the  previous  year.     La   Salle  may  be  called 
the    father   of   the    colony.     That    remJlrkable   .man 
entered   the   country   with    a   handful   of    folLwers, 
bent  on  his  grand  scheme  of  Mississippi  discovery. 
A  legion  of  enemies  rose  in  his  path ;   but  neither 
delay,   disappointment,   sickness,   famine,   open    force, 
nor  secret  conspiracy,  could  bend  his   soul  of  irpH. 
,  Disasters    accumulated    upon    him.     He  flung   them 
off,  and   still    pressed   forward   to    his   object.      His 
victorious   energy   bore    all   before    it,  but   the    suc- 
cess on  which  he  had  staked  his   life  served  only  to 
entail   fresh   calamity,  and   an   untimely   death;   and 
his   best   reward   is,  that   his   name   stands  forth  in 
history   an  ■  imperis'hable   monument    of   heroic   con- 
stancy.    "When  on  his  way  to  the  Mississippi  in  thd 
year  1680,  La  Salle  built  a  fort  in  thi    country  of 
the  Illinois,  and,  on  his  return  from   the  r-  •  ^h  of 
the  great  river,  some  of  his  followers  remft...tu,aild 
established    themselves    near    the    spot.      Heroes    of 
another   stamp  took  up  the  work  which   the  daring 
Norman  had  begun.     Jesuit  missionaries,  among  the 
best  and   purest   of  their  order,   bumiiig   with   zisal 
for  the    salvation   of  souls,   and  the   gaining  of  an 
unmortaL  crown,   here    toiled    and    suffered,    with    a 
self-sacrificing   devotion,  which   extorts  ^     *'\bute   Of 
admiration   even  from   sectarian-  bigotry.     While  the 
roider. ;  apostles    of  Protestantism    labored    upon   the 
Outskirts  iof   heathendom,   tliesa    champions    of    the 
OTQss,  i  the  .. forlorn    hope    of    the    army    of    Rome, 
pierced   to   the    heart   of   its    dark    and    dreary   do- 

every    step,    and    well 


.1  .\ 


main,    confronting 


■^4i#W*V.<i*W^    ",*«  4»?*-;v-T^*?A-.i*wit;'-i^*'1<W^,' *y**** 


'% 


518 


THE  ILLINOIS. 


[Chap.  XXVIII. 


€" 


It 
I. 


repaid  for  all,  could  they  but  sprinkle  a  few  drops 
of  water  on  the  forehead  of  a  dying  child,  or  hang 
a  gilded  crucifix  round  the  neck  of  some  warrior, 
pleased  with  the  glittering  trinket.  With  the  begin- 
ning of  the  eighteenth  century,  the  black  robe  of 
the  Jesuit  was  known  in  every  village  of  the  IIH- 
nois.  Defying  the  wiles  of  Satan  and  the  malice  of 
his  emissaries  the  Indian  sorcerers,  exposed  to  the 
Tn-(:  ox  tiio  el'^ments,  and  every  casualty  of  forest 
life,  they  followed  their  wandering  proselytes  to  war 
and  to  the  chase ;  now  wading  thicugh  morasses, 
now  dragging  canoes  over  i-apids  and  sand-bars, 
now  scorched  with  heat  on  the  sweltering  prairie, 
1 1  and  now  shivering  houseless  in  the  blasts  of  Jan- 
uary. At  Kaskaskia  and  Gahokia  they  established 
missions,  and  built  frail  churches  from  the  bark  of 
trees,  fit  emblems  of  their  own  transient  and  futile 
labors.  Morning  and  eoning,  the  wage  worship- 
pers sang  praises  to  the  V^irgin,  and  kn  H  in  suppl' 
cation  before  the  shrine  of  St.  Joseph.^ 

Soldiers  and  fur-traders  followed  wh'^e  these 
pioneers  of  the  church  had  led  the  ^vt.^.  Forts 
were  built  here  and  there  throughout  the  counfi 
and  the  cabins  of  settlers  clustered  about  the  n 
sion  houses.  The  new  colonists,  emigrants  from 
Canada  or  disbanded  soldiers  of  French  regiments, 
bore  a  close  resemblance  to  the  settlers  of  Detroit, 
or  ilie  primitive  people  of  Acadia,  whose  simple  life 
poetty  has  chosen  as  an  appropriate  theme.  The 
*^reo;o   of    the   IP  .nois,   contented,  light-hearted,  and 

riftl' ss,    by   no    means    fulfilled    the   injunction  to 
incrcc,  c  and  multiply,  and  the  colony  languished  in 

1  For  an  account  of  Jesuit  labors  ia  the  Illinois,  see  the  letters  of  Father 
Marest,  in  Lett  Edif^  IV.  ;-     i     -^     .^«^.«ru-   , 


[Chap.  XXVIII. 


Chap.  XXVIIL] 


'^-OLES  OF  THE  lUJNOIS. 


519 


spite  of  the  fcitile  soil.  The  people  labored  long 
enough  to  gain  a  bare  subsistence  for  each  passing 
day,  and  spent  the  rest  of  their  time  in  dancing 
and  merry-making,  smoking,  gossiping,  and  hunt- 
ing. Thcu'  native  gayety  Avas  irrepressible,  and 
they  found  means  to  stimulate  it  with  wine  made 
from  the  fruit  of  the  wild  grape-vmes.  Thus  they 
passed  their  days,  at  peace  with  themselves,  liand 
and  glove  with  their  Indian  neighbors,  and  igno- 
rant of  all  tl)c  world  beside.  Money  was  scarcely 
known  among  them.  Skins  and  furs  were  the 
prevailing  currency,  and  in  every  village  a  great 
portion  of  the  land  was  held  in  common.  The 
military  co  amandant,  whose  station  was  at  Fort 
Chartrcs,  on  the  Mississippi,  ruled  the  colony  with  a 
sway  absolute  as  that  of  the  Pacha  of  Egypt,  and 
judged  civil  and  criminal  cases  without  right  of 
appeal.  Yet  his  power  was  exercised  in  a  patri- 
archal spirit,  and  he  usually  commanded  the  respect 
and  confidence  of  the  people.  Many  years  later, 
when,  after  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  the  Illinois 
came  imder  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States, 
the  perplexed  inhabitants,  totally  at  a  loss  to  under- 
stand the  complicated  machinery  of  republicanism, 
begged  to  be  delivered  from  the  intolerable  burden 
of  self-government,  and  to  be  once  more  subjected 
to  a  military  commandant.^ 

The  Creole  is  as   unchanging   in  Ivls  nature  and 
habits   as    the   Indian   himself      Even    at   this    day, 


.1* 


ec  the  letters  of  Father 


•  The  principal  authorities  for  the 
above  account  of  tlie  Illinois  colony, 
are  Hutc'  na,  Topographical  De- 
scription, .i7.  Voln^,  View  of  the 
United  States,  370.  Pitman,  Present 
State  of  tjio  European  Settlements 
un  the   Missiijsippi,   passim.    Law, 


Address  before  tlie  Historical  Soci- 
ety of  Vincennes,  14.  Brown,  Hist. 
Illinois,  208.  Journal  of  Captain 
Harry  Gordon,  in  Appendix  to  Pow- 
nall's  Topographical  Description. 
Nicollet,  Report  on  the  Hydrograph- 
icai  Basin  of  tlie  Mississippi.  75. 


620 


TIIF   TT.LINOIS. 


[CiiAP,  XXVIII. 


'1 

* 

\ 
1 

i 

1 

« 

♦ 

one  may  sec,  nlong  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi,  the 
same  low-browcd  cottages,  with  their  broad  caves 
and  picturesque  verandas,  vvhicli,  a  century  ago,  weio 
clustered  around  the  mission-house  at  Kaskuskiu; 
and,  entering,  one  finds  tlic  inmate  the  same  kindly, 
honest,  lively,  story-telling,  and  pipe-smokhig  bciin' 
that  his  ancestor  was  before  him.  Yet,  with  all 
his  genial  traits,  the  rough  world  deals  hardly  ^vith 
him.  He  lives  a  mere  drone  in  the  busy  hho 
of  an  American  population.  The  living  tide  en- 
croaches on  his  rest,  as  the  muddy  torrent  of  tlie 
great  river  chafes  away  the  farm  and  homest(  ad  of 
his  fathers.  Yet  he  contrives  to  be  happy,  though 
looking  back  regretfully  to  the  better  days  of  old. 

At  the  date  of  this  history,  the  population  of  the 
colony,  including  negroes,  who,  in  that  simple  rom- 
munity,  were  treated  rather  as  humble  friends  tluiu 
as  slaves,  did  not  exceed  two  thousand  souls,  distiib- 
ut(>d  in  several  small  settlements.  There  were  about 
eighty  houses  at  Kaskaskia,  forty  or  fifty  at  Ca- 
hokia,  a  few  at  Vincennes  and  Fort  Chartres,  and 
a  few  more  scattered  in  small  clusters  upon  the 
various  streams.  The  agricultural  portion  of  the 
colonists  were,  as  we  have  described  them,  marked 
with  many  weaknesses,  and  many  amiable  virtues; 
but  their  morals  were  not  improved  by  a  large  ad- 
mixture of  fur-traders, — reckless,  hairbrained  adven- 
turers, who,  happily  for  the  peace  of  their  relatives, 
were  absent  on  their  wandering  vocation  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  year. 

Swarms  of  vagabond  Indians  infested  the  settle- 
ments, and,  to  people  of  any  other  character,  they 
would  have  proved  an  intolerable  annoyance.  But 
the  easy-tempered  Creoles  made  friends  and  comnides 


[Chap.  XXVIII. 

Mississippi,  the 
iir  broad  eaves 
mtury  ago,  were 

at    Kaskaskiii ; 

ho  same  kindly, 

D-snioking   bchig 

Yet,   with    all 

'als   hardly  with 

the    busy    hive 

living  tide  en- 
r  torrent  of  the 
d  homest(uid  of 
i  happy,  though 
r  days  of  old. 
opuhition  of  the 
hat  simple  com- 
ble  friends  than 
nd  souls,  distrib- 
liere  "were  about 

or  fifty  at  Ca- 
rt Chartres,  and 
listers   upon  the 

portion  of  the 
id  them,  marked 
amiable  virtues ; 
I  by  a  large  ad- 
lirbrained  adven- 
f  their  relatives, 
ition  during  the 

Dsted  the  settle- 
•  eharacter,  they 
annoyance.  Ihit 
ds  and  comrades 


r 


Chap.  XXVIU]         INDIANS  OP  THE  ILLINOIS. 


521 


of  them,  ate,  drank,  smoked,  and  often  married 
with  them.  They  were  a  debauched  and  drunken 
rabble,  the  remnants  of  that  branch  of  the  Algon- 
quin stock  known  among  the  French  as  the  Illinois, 
a  people  once  numerous  and  powerful,  but  now  mis- 
erably enfeebled,  and  corrupted  by  foreign  wars,  do- 
mestic dissensions,  and  their  own  licentious  manners. 
They  comprised  the  broken  fragments  of  five  tribes 
—  the  Kaskaskias,  Cahokias,  Peorias,  Mitchigamias, 
and  Tamaronas.  Some  of  their  villages  were  in  the 
close  vicinity  of  the  Creole  settlements.  On  a  hot 
summer  morning,  they  might  be  seen  lounging  about 
the  trading-house,  basking  in  the  sun,  begging  for 
a  dram  of  whiskey,  or  chaffering  with  the  hard- 
featured  trader  for  beads,  tobacco,  gunpowder,  and 
red  paint. 

About  the  Wabash  and  its  branches,  to  the  east- 
ward of  the  Illinois,  dwelt  tribes  of  similar  lineage, 
but  more  warlike  in  character,  and  less  corrupt  in 
manners.  These  were  the  Miamis,  in  their  three 
divisions,  their  near  kindred,  the  Piankishaws,  and  a 
portion  of  the  Kickapoos.  There  was  another  settle- 
ment of  the  Miamis  upon  the  River  Maumee,  still 
farther  to  the  cast;  and  it  was  here  that  Bradstreet's 
ambassador,  Captain  Morris,  had  met  so  rough  a 
welcome.  The  strength  of  these  combined  tribes  was 
very  considerable ;  and,  one  and  all,  they  looked  with 
wrath  and  abhorrence  on  the  threatened  advent  of 
the  English. 


66 


RR 


*/ 


i 


f 


w 


vt 


r^ 


i  ■■■i 


i'y:n:-^M'-^-m 


.¥^ 


CHAPTER    XXIX. 

PONTIAC   RALLIES   THE  WESTERN   TRIBES. 


When,  by  the  treaty  of  Paris,  1763,  France  ceded 
to  England  her  territories  east  of  the  Mississippi, 
the  Illinois  was  of  course  included  in  the  cession. 
Scarcely  were  the  articles  signed,  when  France,  as 
if  eager  to  rob  herself,  at  one  stroke,  of  all  lier 
western  domain,  threw  away  upon  Spain  the  vast 
and  indefinite  regions  beyond  the  Mississippi,  des- 
tined at  a  later  day  to  return  to  her  hands,  and 
finally  to  swell  the  growing  empire  of  the  United 
States.  This  transfer  to  Spain  was  for  some  time 
kept  secret;  but  orders  were  immediately  sent  to  the 
officers  commanding  at  the  French  posts  within  the 
territory  ceded  to  England,  to  evacuate  the  country 
whenever  British  troops  should  appear  to  occupy  it. 
These  orders  reached  the  lUiuuis  towards  the  close 
of  1763.  Some  time,  however,  was  destined  to 
elapse  before  the  English  arrived  to  demand  its  sur- 
render ;  for  the  Indian  war  was  then  at  its  height, 
and  the  country  was  protected  from  access  by  a 
broad  barrier  of  savage  tribes,  in  the  hottest  ferment 
of  hostility.    •?■  • 

The  colonists,  hating  the  Englisli  with  a  more 
than  national  hatred,  deeply  imbitcered  by  years  of 
disastrous  war,  received  the  news  of  the  treaty  with 
disgust    and    execration.      Many    of   them    left   the 


■-i*|j..4r? 


Chap.  XXIX.] 


ST.  LOUIS. 


523 


:   TRIBES.        r^^ 

[,  France  ceded 
;he  Mississippi, 
in  the  cession. 
lien  France,  as 
ke,  of  all  her 
Spain  the  vast 
klississippi,  des- 
her  hands,  and 
of  the  United 
for  some  time 
tely  sent  to  the 
losts  within  the 
ite  the  country 
r  to  occupy  it. 
^^ards  the  close 
as  destined  to 
demand  its  sur- 
.  at  its  height, 
n  access  by  a 
hottest  ferment 

I   with    a   more 

ed   by  years  of 

the  treaty  with 

them    left   tlie 


country,  loath  to  dwell  under  the  shadow  of  the  Brit- 
ish flag.  Of  these,  some  crossed  the  Mississippi  to  the 
little  hamlet  of  St.  Genevieve,  on  the  western  bank; 
others  followed  the  commandant,  Neyon  de  Villiers, 
to  New  Orleans;  while  others,  taking  with  them  all 
their  possessions,  even  to  the  frames  and  clapboard- 
iiig  of  their  houses,  passed  the  river  a  little  above 
Cahokia,  and  established  themselves  at  a  beautiful 
spot  on  the  opposite  shore,  where  a  settlement  was 
just  then  on  the  point  of  commencement.  Here  a 
line  of  richly-wooded  bluffs  rose  with  easy  ascent 
from  the  margin  of  the  water,  while  from  their 
summits  extended  a  wide  plateau  of  fertile  prairie, 
bordered  by  a  framework  of  forest.  In  the  shadow 
of  the  trees,  which  fringed  the  edge  of  the  declivity, 
stood  a  newly-built  storehouse,  with  a  few  slight 
cabins  and  works  of  defence,  belonging  to  a  company 
of  fur-traders.  At  their  head  was  Pierre  Laclede, 
who  had  left  New  Orleans  with  his  followers  in  Au- 
gust, 1763,  and,  after  toilmg  for  threb  months  against 
the  impetuous  stream  of  the  Mississippi,  had  reached 
the  Illinois  in  November,  and  selected  the  spot  al- 
luded to  as  the  site  of  his  first  establishment.  To 
this  he  gave  the  name  of  St.  Louis.  ^  Side  by  side 
with  Laclede,  in  his  adventurous  enterprise,  was  a 
young  man,  slight  in  person,  but  endowed  with  a 
vigor  and  elasticity  of  frame  which  could  resist  heat 
or  cold,  fatigue,  hunger,  or  the  wasting  hand  of  time. 
Not  all  the  magic  of  a  dream,  nor  the  enchantments 
of  an  Arabian  tale,  could  outmatch  the  waking  reali- 
ties destined  to  rise  upon  the  vision  of  Pierre  Chou- 
teau.    Where,    in   his   youth,    he    had    climbed   the 

1  Nicollet,   Historical   Sketch  of     dro^raphical  Basin  of  the  Upper  Mis* 
St.  Louia.    See  Report  on  the  Hy-    sissippi  River,  75. 


T 


524 


PONTIAC  m  THE  WEST. 


[Chap.  XXIX. 


I* 


woody  bluff,  and  looked  abroad  on  prairies  dotted 
with  bison,  he  saw,  with  the  dim  eye  of  his  old 
age,  the  land  darkened  for  many  a  furlong  with  the 
cl  iStered  roofs  of  the  western  metropolis.  For  the 
silence  of  the  wilderness,  he  heard  the  clang  and 
turmoil  of  human  labor,  the  din  of  congregated 
thousands;  and  where  the  great  river  rolled  down 
through  the  forest,  in  lonely  grandeur,  he  saw  the 
waters  lashed  into  foam  beneath  the  prows  of  pant- 
ing steamboats,  flocking  to  the  broad  levee.^ 

In  the  summer  of  1764,  the  military  commandant, 
Neyon,  had  abandoned  the  countiy  in  disgust,  and 
gone  down  to  New  Orleans,  followed  by  many  of  the 
inhabitants,  a  circumstance  already  mentioned.  St. 
Ange  de  Bellerive  remained  behind  to  succeed  him. 
St.  Ange  was  a  veteran  Canadian  officer,  the  same 
who,  more  than  forty  years  before,  had  escorted  Father 
Charlevoix  through  the  country,  and  who  is  spoken 
of  with  high  commendation  by  the  Jesuit  traveller 
and  historian.  He  took  commond  of  about  forty 
men,  the   renmant  of  the  garrisou  of  Fort  Chartres, 


'  Laclede,  the  founder  of  St.  Louis, 
died  before  he  had  brought  his  grand 
fur-trading  enterprise  to  a  conclusion ; 
but  his  young  assistant  lived  to  real- 
ize schemes  still  more  bold  and  com- 
prehensive ;  and  to  every  trader,  trap- 
jM^r,  and  voyageur,  from  the  frontier 
i)f  the  United  States  to  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  and  from  tlie  British  Pos- 
sossions  to  the  borders  of  New  Mexi- 
co, the  name  of  Pierre  Chouteau  is 
familiar  as  his  own.  I  visited  this 
venerable  man  in  the  spring  of  1846, 
at  his  country-seat,  in  a  rural  spot 
surrounded  by  woods,  within  a  lew 
miles  of  St  Louis.  The  building,  in 
the  picturesque  architecture  peculiar 
to  the  Frencli  dwellings  of  the  Mis- 
HiBsippi  Valley,  with  its  broad  eaves 
and  light  verandas,  and  tlic  surround- 


ing negro  houses,  filled  with  gay  and 
contented  inmates,  were  in  singular 
harmony  witli  the  character  of  tlis 
patriarchal  fiwner,  who  prided  himself 
on  his  fidelity  to  the  old  French 
usages.  Though  in  extreme  old  ago, 
he  still  retained  the  vivacity  of  lii^ 
nation.  His  memory,  especially  of 
the  events  of  his  youtli,  was  clear 
and  vivid ;  and  he  delighted  to  look 
back  to  the  farthest  extremity  of  tlic 
loiig  vista  of  his  life,  and  recall  the 
acta  and  incidents  of  his  earliest 
years.  Of  Pontiac,  whom  he  had 
often  seen,  he  had  a  clear  recollec- 
tion; and  I  am  indebted  to  this  in- 
teresting interview  for  several  par- 
ticulars regarding  tlie  chief  ami  his 
coatijutors. 


[Chap.  XXIX. 


Chap.  XXIX.] 


ST.  ANGE  DE  BELLERIVE. 


525 


which,  remote  as  it  was,  was  then  esteemed  one  of 
the  best  constructed  railitaiy  works  in  America.  Its 
ramparts  of  stone,  garnished  with  twenty  cannon, 
scowled  across  the  encroaching  Mississippi,  destined, 
before  many  years,  to  ingulf  curtain  and  bastion  in 
its  ravenous  abyss. 

St.  Ange's  position  was  by  no  means  an  enviable 
one.  He  had  a  critical  part  to  play.  On  the  one 
hand,  he  had  been  advised  of  the  cession  to  the  Ens- 
lish,  and  ordered  to  jield  up  the  country  whenever 
they  should  arrive  to  claim  it.  On  the  other,  he  was 
beset  by  embassies  from  Pontiac,  from  the  Shawa- 
noes,  and  from  the  Miamis,  and  plagued  day  and 
night  by  an  importunate  mob  of  Illinois  Indians,  de- 
manding arms,  ammunition,  and  assistance  against 
the  common  enemy.  Perhaps,  in  his  secret  heart, 
St.  Ange  would  have  rejoiced  to  see  the  scalps  of 
all  the  Englishmen  in  the  backwoods  fluttering  in 
the  wind  over  the  Illinois  wigwams;  but  his  situ- 
ation forbade  him  to  comply  with  the  solicitations  of 
his  intrusive  petitioners,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that 
some  sense  of  honor  and  humanity  enforced  the  dic- 
tates of  prudence.  Accordingly,  he  cajoled  them  with 
flatteries  and  promiaCii,  and  from  time  to  time  dis- 
tributed a  few  presents  to  stay  their  importunity, 
still  praying  daily  that  the  English  might  appear  and 
relieve  him  from  hh  uneasy  dilemma.^ 

While  Laclede  was  founding  St.  Louis,  while  the 
discontented  settlers  of  the  Illinois  were  deserting 
their  homes,  and  while  St.  Ange  was  laboring  to 
pacify  his  Indian  neighbors,  all  the  tribes  from  the 
Maumce    to    the   Mississippi   were   in   a   turmoil   of 

1  MS.  Letter  —  St.  Ango  to  D'Abbadie,  Sept.  9. 


! 


526 


PONTIAC  m  THE  WEST.  [Chap.  XXIX. 


excitement.  Pontiac  was  among  them,  furious  as  u 
wild  beast  at  bay.  By  the  double  campaign  of  1764, 
his  best  hopes  had  been  crushed  to  the  earth;  but 
he  stood  unshaken  amidst  the  ruin,  and  still  strug- 
gled with  desperate  energy  to  retrieve  his  broken 
cause.  On  the  side  of  the  northern  lakes,  the  move- 
ments of  Bradstrect  had  put  down  the  insurrection 
of  the  tribes,  and  wrested  back  the  military  posts 
v/liich  cunning  and  treachery  had  placed  within  their 
grasp.  In  the  south,  Bouquet  had  forced  to  abject 
submission  the  wi  \likc  Dcla wares  and  Shawanoes,  the 
warriors  on  whose  courage  and  obstinacy  Pontiac  had 
gr^imdod  his  strc.ngest  confidence.  On  every  hand 
defeat  and  disarm ver  were  closing  around  him.  One 
sanctuary  r.lone  remained,  tlie  country  of  the  Illi- 
nois.  Here  the  flag  of  France  still  floated  on  the 
banks  of  the  ]Mississippi,  and  here  no  English  foot 
had  dared  to  penetrate.  He  resolved  to  invoke  all 
his  resources,  and  bend  all  his  energies  to  defend 
this  last  citadel.'       ■  .       ,.' 


'  K 


1  By  the  following  extract  from 
an  official  paper,  signed  by  Captain 
Grant,  and  forwarded  from  Detroit, 
it  appears  that  Pontiac  still  retained, 
or  professed  to  retain,  Ids  original  de- 
signs against  tlie  garrison  of  Detroit. 
The  paper  haa  no  date,  but  was  ap- 
parently written  in  t^-'  autumn  of 
17()4.  By  a  note  appended  to  it,  we 
are  told  that  tlie  Baptiste  Campau  re- 
ferred to  was  one  of  those  who  had 
acted  as  Pontiac's  secretaries  during 
the  summer  of  17(53. 

"  On  Tuesday  last  Mr.  Jadcau  told 
me,  in  the  presence  of  Col.  Gladwin 
&  Lieut.  Ility  <jf  tiio  (ith  Regiment, 
that  one  liOsporanre,  a  Frenchman, 
on  his  wny  to  thi"  Illinois,  he  saw  a 
letter  v.ith  the  ()ttawnj».  nt  the  Mi- 
Bmoc  lliver,  lie  is  sure  wrote  by  one 
Baptist  Campuu,  (a  deserU-r  from  llic 


settlement  of  Detroit,)  &  signed  by" 
Pontiac,  from  tlie  Illinois,  setting  forth 
that  there  were  five  hundred  English 
coming  to  the  Illinois,  &  that  they, 
the  Ottawas,  must  have  patience ;  tlwt 
he,  Pontiac,  was  not  to  return  until 
he  had  defeated  tlie  Englisii,  and 
tlicn  he  would  come  witli  an  anny 
from  the  Illinois  to  tike  Detroit,  which 
he  desired  tJiey  might  publish  to  all 
tlic  nations  about.  Tliat  powder  & 
ball  was  in  as  great  plenty  as  water. 
That  tlie  French  Commissary  La 
ClefF  had  sold  above  forty  tht)us;in(l 
weiglit  of  powder  to  the  inh;iblt:nit.<, 
that  the  English  if  they  came  there 
might  not  'lave  it 

"Tlierc  was  another  Inticr  on  tlir- 
snbjeci  hcnt  to  an  inhabitanl  of  De- 
troit, but  he  can't  tell  in  whose  iiunds 
it  is." 


[Chap.  XXIX. 

,  furious  as  a 
)aign  of  1764, 
he  earth;  but 
ad  still  Strug. 
re  his  broken 
kes,  the  movo- 
le  msurrcctiou 
military  posts 
id  within  their 
reed  to  abject 
Shawanoes,  the 
3V  Pontiac  liad 
►n.  every  hand 
nd  him.  One 
ry   of  the  Illi- 

floated  on  the 
)  English   foot 

to  invoke  all 
gies  to   defend 


ctroit,)  &.  signed  by' 

Illinois,  scttinij:  forth 

five  hundred  English 

linois,  &  that  tliey, 

it  have  patience ;  tJmt 

not  to  return  until 
A  the  English,  and 
come  witli  an  army 
otike  Detroit,  which 
might  publish  to  all 
it.  That  powder  & 
cat  plenty  as  water. 

h  Connnissary  La 
bovc  forty  thousaml 
r  to  the  inhabitiint.-;, 

if  they  came  there 
t. 

iKithor  letter  on  the 
tit  inhabitant  of  Dc- 
t  tell  in  whose  hands 


Chap.  XXIX  ] 


HIS  FRENCH  ALLIES. 


527 


He   was   not   left   to   contend   unaided.      The  fur- 
trading    French,    living    at    the    settlements    on    the 
Mississippi,   scattered    about   the   forts   of    Ouatanon, 
Vincennes,   and   Miami,   or  domesticated  among  the 
Indians  of  the  Rivers  Illinois  and  Wabash,  dreaded 
the  English  as  dangerous  competitors  in  their  voca- 
tion, and  were  eager  to  bar  them  from  the  country. 
They  lavished  abuse  and  calumny  on  the  objects  of 
their  jealousy,   and    spared   no   falsehood  which   in- 
genious malice  and  self-interest  could  suggest.     They 
gave  out  that  the  English  were  bent  on.  the  ruin  of 
the  tribes,  and  to  that  end  were  stir/ing  them  up  to 
mutual    hostility.      They   insisted    that,   though    the 
armies  of   France    had    been    delayed    so    long,   they 
were  nevertheless  on  their  way,  and  that  the  bayonets 
of  the  white-coated  warriors  would  soon  glitter  among 
the   forests   of  the   Mississippi.     Forged   letters  were 
sent  to  Pontiac,  signed  by  the  King  of  France,  ex- 
horting him   to  stand  his  ground   but   a   few  weeks 
longer,    and   all  would   then   be  well.     To    give    the 
better  coloring  to  their  falsehoods,  some  of  these  in- 
cendiaries   assumed   the   uniform   of   French    officers, 
and   palmed   themselves  off  upon  their  credulous  au- 
ditors as  ambassadors  from  the  king.     Many  ( f  the 
principal  traders  distributed  among  the  warriors  sup 
plies    of  arms    and    ammunition,    in    some    instances 
given  gratuitously,  and  in  others  sold  on  credit,  with 
the  understanding  that  payment  should  be  made  from 
the  plunder  of  the  English.* 


1  MS.  Gage  Papers.    MS.Johvison  naturalized  among  the  Indians.    In 

Papers.   Croghan,  Journal.  Hildreth,  the  autumn  of  17(54,  he  accompanied 

Pioneer   History,   68.     Examination  a  war-party  against  the  frontier,  and 

of  Gerahom  Hicks,  see  Pcnn.  Gaz.  volunteered  to  come  as  a  apy  to  Fort 

No.  184(5.  Pitt,  to  ascertain  the  possibility  of 

Hicks  was  an  EnglisL  miscreant,  taking  scalps  in  the  neighborhood. 


\ 

4 


528 


PONTIAC  IN  THE  WEST. 


ICiiAP.  XXIX. 


^^i 

V 

w 

r 

"V'n  M 

»■" 

'  '  "am 

i» 

*    [  'j3m 

I 

'.'<M 

"1 

t 

^» 

i 

.'ij^B 

I 

-^K 

1 

'9 

1 

? 

^ 

.J 

i 

-■ 

Now  that  the  insurrection  in  the  east  was  qiiellctl, 
and  the  Delawares  and  Shawanoes  beaten  into  sub- 
mission, it  was  thought  that  the  English  would  lose 
no  time  in  taking  full  possession  of  the  country, 
which,  by  the  peace  of  1763,  had  been  transferred 
into  their  hands.  Two  principal  routes  would  give 
access  to  the  Illinois.  Troops  might  advance  from 
the  south,  up  the  great  natural  highway  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, or  they  might  descend  from  the  east  by  way 
of  Fort  Pitt  and  the  Ohio.  In  either  case,  to  meet 
and  repel  them  was  the  determined  purpose  of 
Pontiac. 

When  we  last  took  leave  of  him,  he  was  on  the 
River  Maumee,  wliithcn'  he  had  retired  with  his 
chosen  adherents,  on  the  approach  of  Bradstreet's 
army,  and  where,  by  successive  tidings,  he  leamcd 
the  humiliation  of  his  allies,  and  the  triumph  of  his 
enemies.  Towards  the  close  of  autumn,  he  left  his 
encampment,  and,  followed  by  four  hundred  warriors, 


flo  wad  detected,  seized,  and  exam- 
ined, and  the  infonnation  he  gave 
proved  authentic. 

Johnson's  letters  to  the  Board  of 
Trade,  in  the  early  part  of  1765,  con- 
tain con'^tant  references  to  the  sinis- 
ter conduct  of  the  Illinois  French. 
The  commander-in-chief  is  still  more 
bitter  in  his  invectives,  and  seems  to 
think  that  French  officers  of  the 
crown  wore  concerned  in  these  prac- 
tices, as  well  as  the  traders.  If  we 
may  judge,  however,  from  the  corrc- 
Bpondcnce  of  St.  Ange  and  his  subor- 
dinates, they  may  be  acquitted  of  tlie 
charge  of  any  active  interference  in 
tJie  matter. 

"  Sent  14.  I  had  a  private  meet- 
ing witli  tlio  Grand  Sautour,  when  he 
tcld  iiie  he  was  well  di8i)osed  for 
peace  Inat  fall,  but  was  then  sent  for 
to  the  Illinois,  where  ho  met  with 


Pondiac  ;  and  that  then  their  futhcn*, 
tlie  French,  told  them,  if  they  would 
bo  strong,  and  keep  the  Englisii  out 
of  tlie  possession  of  tliat  cotnitry  but 
this  summer,  that  the  King  of  France 
would  send  over  an  army  next  s|)rin^, 
to  assist  his  children,  the  Indians; 
and  that  the  King  of  Spain  would 
likewise  send  troops,  to  help  lliem  to 
keep  the  English  out  of  the  country ; 
that  tlic  EngliHli  wore  a  bad  people, 
and  had  a  design  to  cut  oft'  all  tJie 
Indian  nation.-*  in  tliis  country,  and  to 
bring  the  southern  Indians  to  live  and 
settle  there.  This  account  made  all 
the  Indians  very  uneasy  in  their 
minds;  and  after  holdmg  a  council 
among  tliemselves,  they  all  deter- 
mined to  oppose  the  English,  and  not 
suffer  them  to  take  poshcssion  of  the 
Illinois."  —  Croghan,  Jcurtiul,  J7(J5. 


Chap.  XXIX.] 


HE  VISITS  THE  ILLINOIS. 


529 


journeyed  westward,  to  visit  in  succession  the  differ-- 
ent  tribes,  and  gain  their  cooperation  in  his  plans 
of  final  defence.  Crossing  over  to  the  Wabash,  he 
passed  from  village  to  village,  among  the  Kickapoos, 
the  Piankishaws,  and  the  three  tribes  of  the  Miamis, 
rousing  them  by  his  imperious  eloquence,  and  breathe 
ing  into  them  his  own  fierce  spirit  of  resistance. 
1  Hence,  by  rapid  marches  through  forests  and  over 
prairies,  he  reached  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
summoned  the  four  tribes  of  the  Illinois  to  a  general 
meeting.  But  these  degenerate  savages,  beaten  by 
the  surrounding  tribes  for  many  a  generation  past, 
had  lost  their  warlike  spirit,  and,  though  abundantly 
noisy  and  boastful,  showed  no  zeal  for  fight,  and  en- 
tered with  no  zest  into  the  schemes  of  the  Ottawa 
war-chief.  Pontiac  had  his  own  way  of  dealing  with 
such  spirits.  "  If  you  hesitate,"  he  exclaimed,  frown- 
ing on  the  cowering  assembly,  "  I  will  consume  your 
tribes  as  the  fire  consumes  the  dry  grass  on  the 
prairie."  The  doubts  of  the  Illinois  vanished  like 
the  mist,  and  with  marvellous  alacrity  they  declared 
their  concurrence  in  the  views  of  the  orator.  Hav- 
ing secured  these  allies,  such  as  they  were,  Pontiac 
departed,  and  hastened  to  Fort  Chartres.  St.  Ange, 
so  long  tormented  with  embassy  after  embassy,  and 
mob  after  mob,  thought  that  the  crowning  evU  was 
come  at  last,  when  he  saw  the  arch-demon  Pon- 
tiac enter  at  the  gate,  with  four  hundred  warriors 
at  his  back.  Arrived  at  the  council-house,  Pontiac 
addressed  the  commandant  in  a  tone  of  high  cour- 
tesy :  "  Father,  we  have  long  wished  to  see  you,  to 
shake  hands  with  you,  and,  whilst  smoking  the  calu- 
met of  peace,  to  recall  the  battles  in  which  we 
fought  together  agiiinst  the  misguided  Indians  and 
67  ss 


V' 


'd 


530 


» I 


PONTIAC  IN  THE  WEST. 


[Chap.  XXIX. 


the  English  dogs.  I  love  the  French,  and  I  have 
come  hither  with  my  warriors  to  avenge  their 
wrongs."^  Then  followed  a  demand  for  arms,  am- 
munition, and  troops,  to  act  in  concert  with  the 
Indian  warriors.  St.  Ange  was  forced  to  decline 
rendering  the  expected  aid;  but  he  sweetened  his 
denial  with  soothing  compliments,  and  added  a  few 
gifts,  to  remove  any  lingering  bitterness.  Pontiac 
would  not  be  appeased.  He  angrily  complained  of 
such  lukewarm  friendship,  where  he  had  looked  for 
ready  sympathy  and  support.  His  warriors  pitched 
their  lodges  about  the  fort,  and  threatening  symp- 
toms of  an  approaching  rupture  began  to  alarm  the 
French.    >■     ■:  •:  ■:    u<  ■:  ihi  :fvi>.?v.f««^  .  -m 

In  the  mean  time,  Pontiac  had  caused  his  squaws 
to  construct  a  belt  of  wampum  of  extraordinary  size, 
six  feet  in  length,  and  four  inches  wide.  It  was 
wrought  from  end  to  end  with  the  symbols  of  the 
various  tribes  and  villages,  forty-seven  in  number, 
still  leagued  together  in  his  alliance.^  He  consigned 
it  to  an  embassy  of  chosen  warriors,  directing  them 
to  carry  it  down  the  Mississippi,  displaying  it,  in 
turn,  at  every  Indian  village  along  its  banks,  and 
exhorting  the  inhabitants,  in  his  name,  to  watch  the 
movements  of  the  English,  and  repel  any  attempt 
they  might  make  to  ascend  the  river.  This  done, 
they  were  to  repair  to  New  Orleans,  and  demand 
from  the  governor,  M.  D'Abbadie,  the  aid  which 
St.   Ange    had    refused.     The    bark    canoes    of  the 


HV 


^  Nicollet,  Report  on  the  Basin  of  derived  from  Chouteau,  Menard,  and 

the  Upper  Misflissippi,  81.    M.  Ni-  other  patriarchs  of  the  Illinois. 

coUct'B  account  is  worthy  of  full  con-  8  Jjfg  letter  —  St.  Ange  to  D'Ab- 

fide  CO,  being  given  on  the  authority  badie,  Sept.  9. 

of   documents    and    oral  narratives  .-.-»..     -  ,•  ' 


[Chap.  XXIX. 

;h,  and  I  have 

avenge    their 

for  anns,  am- 

ncert   with   the 

reed   to   decline 

1   sweetened  his 

id   added  a  few 

imess.      Pontiac 

r  complained  of 

had  looked  for 

;varriors   pitched 

reatening   symp- 

an  to  alarm  the 

ased  his  squaws 
:traordinary  size, 
,  wide.  It  was 
symbols  of  the 
ven  in  nmnber, 
He  consigned 

directing  them 
iisplaying  it,  in 

its  banks,  and 
ne,  to  watch  the 
Del  any  attempt 
vev.  This  done, 
ns,  and   demand 

the    aid    which 

canoes    of  tlic 


Chouteau,  Menard,  and 

hs  of  the  Illinois. 

er  —  St.  Angc  to  D'Ab- 


CaAP.  XXK.] 


REPULSE  OF  LOFTUS. 


531 


embassy  put  out  from  the  shore,  and  whirled  down 
the  current  jike  floating  leaves  in  autiunn. 

Soon  after  their  departure,  tidings  came  to  Fort 
Chartres,  which  caused  a  joyous  excitement  among 
the  ^  'dans,  and  relieved  the  French  garrison  from 
any  danger  of  an  immediate  rupture.  In  our  own 
day,  the  vast  distance  between  the  great  city  of 
New  Orleans  and  the  populous  state  of  Illinois  has 
dwindled  into  insignificance  beneath  the  magic  of 
science;  but  at  the  date  of  this  history,  three  or 
four  months  were  often  consumed  in  the  upward 
passage,  and  the  settlers  of  the  lonely  forest  colony 
were  sometimes  cut  off  from  all  communication  with 
the  world  for  half  a  year  together.  The  above-men- 
tioned tidings,  interesting  as  they  were,  had  occupied 
no  less  time  in  their  passage.  Their  import  was  as 
follows :  — 

Very  early  in  the  previous  spring,  an  English 
officer.  Major  Loftus,  having  arrived  at  New  Orleans 
with  four  hundred  regidars,  had  attempted  to  ascend 
the  Mississippi,  to  take  possession  of  Fort  Chartres 
and  its  dependent  posts.  His  troops  were  embarked 
in  large  and  heavy  boats.  Their  progress  was  slow, 
and  they  had  reacxi'.-l  a  point  not  more  than  eighty 
leagues  above  New  G  leans,  when,  one  morning,  their 
ears  were  greeted  A^ith  the  crack  of  rifles  from  the 
thickets  of  the  western  shore;  and  a  soldier  in  the 
foremost  boat  fell,  with  a  mortal  wound.  The 
troops,  in  dismay,  sheered  over  towards  the  eastern 
shore;  but,  when  fairly  within  gunshot,  a  score  of 
rifles  obscured  the  forest  edge  with  smoke,  and  fiUed 
the  nearest  boat  with  dead  and  wounded  men.  On 
this,  they  steered  fo-  the  middle  of  the  river,  where 


. '  /    / 


it 


532 


PONTIAC  IN  THE  WEST. 


(Chap.  XXIX. 


t  i 


they  remained  for  a  time,  exposed  to  ,.  dropping  fire 
from  either  bank,  too  distant  to  take  effect. 

The  river  was  high,  and  the  shores  so  flooded, 
that  nothing  but  p  Indian  could  hope  to  find 
foothold  in  the  miry  labyrinth.  Loftus  was  ter- 
rified ;  the  troops  were  discouraged,  and  a  council 
of  officers  determined  that  to  advance  was  impos- 
sible. Accordingly,  with  their  best  despatch,  they 
steered  back  for  New  Orleans,  where  they  arrived 
without  farther  accident,  and  where  the  French,  in 
great  glee  at  their  discomfiture,  spared  no  ridicule  at 
their  expense.  They  alleged,  and  with  much  appear- 
ance of  truth,  that  the  English  had  been  repulsed 
by  no  more  than  thirty  warriors.  Loftus  charged 
D'Abbadie  with  having  occasioned  his  disaster  by 
stirring  up  the  Indians  to  attack  him.  The  gov- 
ernor called  Heaven  to  witness  his  innocence ;  and, 
in  truth,  there  is  not  the  smallest  reason  to  believe 
him  guilty  of  such  villany.*  .Loftus,  who  had  not 
yet  recovered  from  his  fears,  conceived  an  idea  that 
the  Indians  below  New  Orleans  were  preparing  an 
ambuscade  to  a,ttack  him  on  his  way  back  to  his 
station  at  Pensacola ;  and  he  petitioned  D'Abbadie 
to  interfere  in  his  behalf.  The  latter,  with  an  ill- 
dissembled  sneer,  offered  to  give  him  and  his  troops 


*  D'Abbadie'e  correspondence  with 
St  Ange  goes  far  to  exonerate  him ; 
and  there  is  a  letter  addressed  to 
him  from  General  Gage,  in  which 
th«  latter  thanks  him  very  cordially 
for  the  cfTorts  which  ho  had  made  in 
behalf  of  Major  Loflua,  aiding  him 
to  procure  boats  and  guides,  and 
make  other  preparations  for  ascend- 
ing the  river. 

The  correspondence  alluded  to 
forms  part  of  a  collection  of  papers 


procured  in  the  archives  of  the  De- 
partment of  the  Marine  and  Colonies 
at  Paris.  These  papers  include  the 
reports  of  various  councils  with  tlie 
Indian  tribes  of  the  Illinois,  and  the 
whole  official  correspondence  of  the 
French  officers  in  tliat  region  during 
tlie  years  I7«Si-5.  They  form  the 
principal  authorities  for  this  part  of 
the  narrative,  and  throw  great  li|fht 
on  the  character  of  the  Indian  war, 
from  its  commencement  to  its  close. 


..mgatfjT'^ai 


{Chap.  XXIX. 


Chap.  XXIX.]    THE  ENGLISH  ON  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


533 


and  by  nunibei      \ 
treatment,  had  ues'  rtt 
The  futile  attet    ' 
sippi  was   foUowtH 
equally    abortive.      C; 


an  escort  of  French  soldiers  to  protect  them.  Loftus 
rejected  the  humiliating  proposal,  and  declared  that 
he  only  wished  for  a  1  ,  uch  interpreter,  to  confer 
with  any  Indians  whom  lie  might  meet  by  the  way. 
The  interpreter  was  funiislv  d,  and  Loftus  returned 
in  safety  to  Pensacol  his  detachment  not  a  little 
reduced   by    the    few    wi.om   the    Indians   had    shot, 

disq;,  ^ed  by  his  overbearing 
the  French.^ 
.ui^n«  to  ascend  the  Missis- 
laonths  after,  by  another 
Pittman  came  to  New 
Orleans  with  the  design  of  proceeding  to  the  Illi- 
nois, but  was  deterred  by  the  reports  which  reached 
him  concerning  the  temper  of  the  Indians.  The 
latter,  elated  beyond  measure  by  their  success  against 
Loftus,  and  excited,  moreover,  by  the  messages  and 
war-belt  of  Pontiac,  were  in  a  state  of  angry  com- 
motion, which  made  the  passage  too  imminently  haz- 
ardous to  be  attempted.  Pittman  bethought  himself 
of  assuming  the  disguise  of  a  Frenchman,  joining  a 
party  of  Creole  traders,  and  thus  reaching  his  des- 
tination by  stealth;  but  weighing  the  risk  of  detec- 
tion, he  abandoned  this  design  also,  and  returned  to 
Mobile.'^  Between  the  Illinois  and  the  settlements 
around  Ncav  Orleans,  the  Mississippi  extended  its 
enormous  length  through  solitudes  of  marsh  and 
forest,  broken  here  and  there  by  a  squalid  Indian 
Ailluge,  or,  at  vast  intervals,  by  one  or  two  military 
posts  erected  by  the  French,  and  forming  the  resting- 


"M^:, 

-'f- 


■i**" 


1  London  Mag.  XXXIII.  380.  2  MS.  Correspondence  of  Pittman 
MS.  "  Detail  de  ce  qui  s'est  mssd  with  M.  D'Abbadie,  among  the  Paris 
a  La  Louisiane  k  Foccasion  de  la    Documents.  • 

prise  de  possession  des  Illinois." 

SS* 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


ta  hi   |22 
^   L^    12.0 


I' 
I 


11.25 


I%3tDgraphic 

Sciences 

Corporalion 


33  WIST  MAIN  STRUT 

WIKSTM.N.Y.  I49W 

(716)  •73-4503 


■^ 


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v:J   , 


f-  ■■> 


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M-        '■*^ 


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.►■»^ 


'i'l 


534 


.i«!«l    PONTIAC  IN  THE  WEST. 


[Chap.  XXIX. 


places  of  the  voyager.  After  the  failure  of  Pittman, 
more  than  a  year  elapsed  before  an  English  detach- 
ment could  succeed  in  passing  this  great  thorough- 
fare of  the  wilderness,  and  running  the  gantlet  of 
the  savage  tribes  who  guarded  its  shores.  It  was 
not  till  the  second  of  December,  1765,  that  Major 
Farmar,  at  the  head  of  a  strong  body  of  troops, 
arrived,  after  an  uninterrupted  voyage,  at  Fort 
Chartres,  where  the  flag  of  his  country  had  already 
supplanted  the  standard  of  France.^ 

To  return  to  our  immediate  theme.  The  ambas- 
sadors, whom  Pontiac  had  sent  from  Fort  Chartres 
in  the  autumn  of  1764,  faithfully  acquitted  them- 
selves of  their  trust.  They  visited  the  Indian  vil- 
lages along  the  river  banks,  kindling  ithe  thirst  for 
blood  and  massacre  in  the  breasts  of  the  inmates. 
They  pushed  their  sanguinary  mission  even  to  the 
farthest  tribes  of  Southern  Louisiana,  to  whom  the 
great  name  of  Pontiac  had  long  been  known,  and 
of  late  made  familiar  by  repeated  messages  and  em- 
bassies." This  portion  of  their  task  accomplished, 
they  repaired  to  New  Orleans,  and  demanded  an 
audience  of  the  governor.  tj  :■', 

New  Orleans  was  then  a  town  of  about  seven 
thousand  white  inhabitants,  guarded  from  the  river 
floods  by  a  levee  extending  for  fifty  miles  along  the 
banks.  The  small  brick  houses,  one  story  in  height, 
were  arranged  with  geometrical   symmetry,  like  the 


1  MS.  Letter — Campbell  to  Gage, 
Feb.  24, 1766. 

^  By  the  correspondence  between 
the  French  officers  of  Upper  and 
Lower  Louisiana,  it  appears  that 
Pontiac's  messengers,  in  several  in- 
stances, had  arrived  in  the  vicinity 


of  New  Orleans,  whither  they  had 
come,  partly  to  beg  for  aid  from  the 
French,  and  partly  to  urge  the  In- 
dians of  the  adjacent  country  to  bar 
the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi  against 
the  English. 


•j'v 


-  \v 


Chap.  XXIX.] 


NEW  ORLEANS  IN  1765. 


535 


squares  of  a  chess-board.  Each  house  had  its  yard 
and  garden,  and  the  town  was  enlivened  with  the 
verdure  of  trees  and  grass.  In  front,  a  public 
square,  or  parade-ground,  opened  upon  the  river, 
enclosed  on  three  sides  by  the  dilapidated  church  of 
St.  Louis,  a  prison,  a  convent,  government  buildings, 
and  a  range  of  barracks.  The  place  was  surrounded 
by  a  defence  of  palisades  strong  enough  to  repel  an 
■attack  of  Indians,  or  insurgent  slaves.^ 

When  Pontiac's  ambassadors  entered  New  Or- 
leans, they  found  the  town  in  a  state  of  confu- 
sion. It  had  long  been  known  that  the  regions 
east  of  the  Mississippi  had  been  surrendered  to  Eng- 
land; a  cession  from  which,  however,  New  Orleans 
and  its  suburbs  had  been  excluded  by  a  special  pro- 
vision. But  it  was  only  within  a  few  weeks  that 
the  dismayed  inhabitants  had  learned  that  their 
mother  country  had  transferred  her  remaining  Amer- 
ican possessions  to  the  crown  of  Spain,  whose  gov- 
ernment and  people  they  cordially  detested.  With 
every  day  they  might  expect  the  arrival  of  a  Span- 
ish governor  and  garrison.  The  French  officials, 
whose  hour  was  drawing  to  its  close,  were  making 
the  best  of  their  short-lived  authority  by  every 
species  of  corruption  and  peculation;  and  the  inhab- 
itants were  awaiting,  in  anger  and  repugnance,  the 
approaching  change,  which  was  to  place  over  their 
heads  masters  whom  they  hated.  The  governor, 
D'Abbadie,  an  ardent  soldier  and  a  zealous  patriot, 
was  so  deeply  chagrined  at  what  he  conceived  to  be 
the  disgrace  of  his  country,   that  his  feeble  health 


'r^i'' 


^  Pittman,  European  Settlements  in  the  text  as  having  made  an  un- 
on  the  Mississippi,  10.  The  author  successful  attempt  to  reach  the  Illi- 
of  this  book  is  the  officer  mentioned    nois. 


n 

V 


I  I 


;f  fi  ' 


ict 


1  r 

'J  . 

\  I   i 

,1  1    » 


536 


PONTIAC  IN  THE  WEST. 


[Chap.  XXIX. 


gave  way,  and  he  betrayed  all  the  symptoms  of  a 
rapid  decline. 

Haggard  with  illness,  and  bowed  down  with  shame, 
the  dying  governor  received  the  Indian  envoys  in  the 
council-hall  of  the  province,  where  he  was  never 
again  to  assume  his  seat  of  office.  Besides  the 
French  officials  in  attendance,  several  English  officers, 
who  chanced  to  be  in  the  town,  had  been  invited  to 
the  meeting,  with  the  view  of  soothing  the  jealousy- 
with  which  they  regarded  all  intercourse  between 
the  French  and  the  Indians.  A  Shawanoe  chief,  the 
orator  of  the  embassy,  displayed  the  great  war-belt, 
and  opened  the  council.  "These  red  dogs,"  he  said, 
alluding  to  the  color  of  the  British  uniform,  "have 
crowded  upon  us  more  and  more;  and  when  we  ask 
them  by  what  right  they  come,  they  tell  us  that 
you,  our  French  fathers,  have  given  them  our  lands. 
We  know  that  they  lie.  These  lands  are  neither 
yours  nor  theirs,  and  no  man  shall  give  or  sell  them 
without  our  consent.  Fathers,  we  have  always  been 
your  faithful  children,  and  we  now  have  come  to 
ask  that  you  will  give  us  gun  >«vder,  and  lead,  to 
aid  us  in  this  war." 

D'Abbadie  replied  in  a  feeble  voice,  endeavoring 
to  allay  their  vindictive  jealousy  of  the  English,  and 
promising  to  give  thom  all  that  should  be  necessary 
to  supply  their  immediate  wants.  The  council  then 
adjourned  until  the  following  day;  but,  in  the  mean 
time,  the  wasted  strength  of  the  governor  gave  way 
beneath  a  renewed  attack  of  his  disorder,  and  before 
the  appointed  hour  arrived,  he  had  breathed  his  last, 
hurried  to  a  premature  death  by  the  anguish  of 
mortified  pride  and  patriotism.  M.  Aubrj',  his  suc- 
cessor, presided  in  his  place,  and  received  the  savage 


Chap.  XXIX.]    PONTIAC'S  EMBASSY  AT  KEW  ORLEANS.       537 


embassy.  The  orator,  after  the  solemn  custom  of 
his  people,  addressed  him  in  a  speech  of  condolence, 
expressing  his  deep  regret  for  D'Abbadie's  untimely 
fate.*  A  chief  of  the  Miamis  then  rose  to  speak, 
with  a  scowling  brow,  and  words  of  bitterness  and 
reproach.  "  Since  we  last  sat  on  these  seats,  our 
ears  have  heard  strange  words.  When  the  English 
told  us  that  they  had  conquered  you,  we  always 
thought  that  they  lied;  but  now  we  have  learned 
that  they  spoke  the  truth.  We  have  learned  that 
you,  whom  we  have  loved  and  served  so  well,  have 
given  the  lands  that  we  dwell  upon  to  your  enemies 
and  ours.  We  have  learned  that  the  English  have 
forbidden  you  to  send  traders  to  our  villages  to 
supply  our  wants,  and  that  you,  whom  we  thought 
so  great  and  brave,  have  obeyed  their  commands  like 
women,  leaving  us  to  starve  and  die  in  misery.  We 
now  tell  you,  once  for  all,  that  our  lands  are  our 
own ;  and  we  tell  you,  moreover,  that  we  can  live 
without  your  aid,  and  hunt,  and  fish,  and  fight,  as 
our  fathers  did  before  us.  All  that  we  ask  of  you 
is  this,  that  you  give  us  back  the  guns,  the  powder, 
the  hatchets,  and  the  knives  which  we  have  worn 
out  in  fighting  your  battles.  As  for  you,"  he  ex- 
claimed, turning  to  the  English  officers,  who  were 
present  as  on  the  previous  day, — "as  for  you,  our 
hearts  bum  with  rage  when  we  think  of  the  ruin 
you  have  brought  on  us."  Aubry  returned  but  a 
weak  answer  to  the  cutting  attack  of  the  Indian 
speaker.      He    assured     the    ambassadors    that    the 

1  At  all  friendly  meetings  with  offering,  at  the  same  time,  a  black 

Indiana,  it  was  customary  for  the  belt  of  wampum,  in  token  of  moum- 

latter,  when  the  other  party  had  bus-  ing.    This  practice  may  be  partic- 

tained  any  signal  loss,  to  commence  ularly  observed   in  the  records  of 

by  a  formal  speech  of  condolence,  early  councils  with  the  Iroquois. 

68 


ill:'-'   :'ii 


,1  '1 


t   .J 


Rf 


1 


fcnr 

T I 


tin: 


•!.4, 


,  I 


,'   - 
1    - 


Mf   i 


«i 

• 

I 

H 

^*i  ■ 

■  :  r 


^■  ■  r. 


5* 


; 


11 


538 


PONTIAC  m  THE  WEST. 


[Chap.  XXIX. 


French  still  retained  their  former  love  for  the  In- 
dians, that  the  English  meant  them  no  harm,  and 
that,  as  all  the  world  were  now  at  peace,  it  behoved 
them  also  to  take  hold  of  the  chain  of  friendship. 
A  few  presents  were  then  distributed,  but  with  no 
apparent  effect.  The  features  of  the  Indians  still 
retained  their  suUen  scowl;  and  on  the  morrow, 
their  canoes  were  ascending  the  Mississippi  on  their 
homeward  voyage.^ 

1  MS.  Report  of  Conference  with    from  Pontiac,  held  at  New  Orleans, 
the  Shawanoe  and  Miami  delegates    March,  1765.    Paris  Documents. 


l\ 


Msm,i 


CHAPTER   XXX. 

RUIN   OP  THE  INDIAN   CAUSE. 

The  repulse  of  Loftus,  and  rumors  of  the  fierce 
temper  of  the  Indians  who  guarded  the  Mississippi, 
convinced  the  commander-in-chief  that  to  reach  the 
Illinois  by  the  southern  route  was  an  enterprise  of 
no  easy  accomplishment.  Yet,  at  the  same  time,  he 
felt  the  strong  necessity  of  a  speedy  military  occu- 
pation of  the  country;  since,  while  the  jiew  de  lis 
floated  over  a  single  garrison  in  the  ceded  territory, 
it  would  be  impossible  to  disabuse  the  Indians  of 
the  phantom  hope  of  French  assistance,  to  which 
they  clung  with  infatuated  tenacity.  The  embers 
of  the  Indian  war  would  never  be  quenched  until 
England  had  enforced  all  her  claims  over  her  de- 
feated rival.  G^e  determined  to  despatch  a  force 
from  the  eastward,  by  way  of  Fort  Pitt  and  the 
Ohio;  a  route  now  laid  open  by  the  late  success  of 
Bouquet,  and  the  submission  of  the  Delawares  and 
Shawanoes. 

To  prepare  a  way  for  the  passage  of  the  troops. 
Sir  William  Johnson's  deputy,  George  Croghan,  was 
ordered  to  proceed  in  advance,  to  reason  with  the 
Indians  as  far  as  they  were  capable  of  reasoning,  to 
soften  their  antipathy  to  the  English,  to  expose  the 
falsehoods  of  the  French,  and  to  distribute  presents 


••^•t 


t 


II 


(    i 


II 


640 


RUm  OP  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE. 


fCiiAP.  XXX. 


among  the  tribes  by  way  of  propitiation.*  The  mis- 
sion was  a  critical  one,  but  Croghan  was  well  fitted 
to  discharge  it.  He  had  been  for  years  a  trader 
among  the  western  tribes,  over  whom  he  had  gained 
much  influence  by  a  certain  vigor  of  character, 
joined  to  a  wary  and  sagacious  policy,  concealed 
beneath  a  bluff  demeanor.  He  and  his  assistant, 
Lieutenant  Fraser,  with  the  men  who  were  to  attend 
them,  set  out  for  Fort  Pitt,  in  February,  1765;  and 
after  traversing  inhospitable  mountains,  and  valleys 
clogged  with  snow,  Reached  their  destination  at 
about  the  same  time  that  Pontiac's  ambassadors 
were  entering  New  Orleans,  to  hold  their  council 
with  the  French. 

A  few  days  later,  an  incident  OQCurred,  which 
afterwards,  through  the  carousals  of  many  a  winter 
evening,  supplied  an  absorbing  topic  of  anecdote  and 
boast  to  the  braggadocio  heroes  of  the  border.  A 
train  of  pack  horses,  bearing  the  gifts  which  Croghan 
was  to  bestow  upon  the  Indians,  followed  him 
towards  Fdrt  Pitt,  a  few  days'  journey  in  the  rear 
of  his  party.  Under  the  same  escort  came  several 
companies  of  traders,  who,  believing  that  the  long 
suspended  commerce  with  the  Indians  was  about  to 
be  reopened,  were  hastening  to  Fort  Pitt  with  a  great 
quantity  of  goods,  eager  to  throw  them  into  the 
market,  the  moment  the  prohibition  should  be  re- 
moved. The  Paxton  men,  and  their  kindred  spirits 
of  the  border,  saw  this  proceeding  with  sinister  eyes. 
In  their  view,  the  traders  were  about  to  make  a 
barter  of  the  blood  of  the  people;  to  place  in  the 
hands  of  murdering   savages   the  means  of  renewing 

^f'^-   ■■':;;    ■■■'-■■*r.,    .      »  MS.  Gage  Papers.     -^M^    'i^>     hh^vA'-- 


Chap.  XXX.]        EXPLOITS  OF  THE  BORDERERS. 


541 


jn.*    The  mis- 


the   devastation  to  which  the   reeking  frontier  bore 
frightful    witness.     Once    possessed    with    this    idea, 
they   troubled    themselves   with   no    more   inquiries; 
and,  having  tried  remonstrances  in  vain,  they  adopted 
a   summary  mode   of   doing   themselves   justice.     At 
the  head  of  the  enterprise  was  a  man  whose  name 
had  been  connected  with  more  praiseworthy  exploits, 
James  Smith,  already  mentioned  as  leading  a  party 
of  independent  riflemen,  for  the  defence  of  the  bor- 
ders, during  the  bloody  autumn  of  1763.     He  now 
mustered  his  old  associates,  made  them  resume  their 
Indian   disguise,   and  led  them  to   their  work   with 
characteristic  energy  and  address. 

The  government  agents  and  traders  were  in  the 
act  of  passing  the  verge  of  the  frontiers.  Their 
united  trains  amounted  to  seventy  pack  horses,  carry- 
ing goods  to  the  value  of  more  than  fifteen  thousand 
pounds.  Advancing  deeper  among  the  mountains, 
they  began  to  descend  the  valley  at  the  foot  of  Si- 
dling Hill.  The  laden  horses  plodded  knee-deep  in 
snow.  The  mountains  towered  above  the  wayfarers 
in  gray  desolation;  and  the  leafless  forest,  a  mighty 
^olian  harp,  howled  dreary  music  to  the  wind 
of  March.  Suddenly,  from  behind  snow-beplastered 
trunks,  and  shaggy  bushes  of  eve.rgreen,  unco'/li  ap- 
paritions started  into  view.  Wild  visages  procitded, 
grotesquely  horrible  with  vermilion  and  ochre,  white 
lead  and  soot;  stalwart  limbs  appeared,  encased  in 
buckskin;  and  rusty  rifles  thrust  out  their  long 
muzzles.  In  front,  and  flank,  and  all  around  them, 
white  puffs  of  smoke  and  sharp  reports  assailed 
the  bewildered  senses  of  the  travellers,  who  were 
yet  more  confounded  by  the  hum  of  bullets  shot 
by   anerring  fingers   within   an  inch  of  their   ears. 

TT 


101 


i  > 


542 


BUIN  OF  TIIE  INDIAN  CAUSE.  [Cbap.  XXX. 


"Gentlemen,"  demanded  the  traders,  in  deprecating 
accents,  "what  would  you  have  us  doV  "Un- 
pack your  horses,"  roared  a  voice  from  the  woods, 
"pile  your  goods  in  the  road,  and  be  off."  The 
traders  knew  those  with  whom  they  had  to  deal. 
Hastening  to  obey  the  mandate,  they  departed  with 
their  utmost  speed,  happy  that  their  scalps  were 
not  numbered  with  the  booty.  The  spoilers  appro- 
priated to  themselves  such  of  the  plunder  as  pleased 
them,  made  a  bonfire  of  the  rest,  and  went  on  their 
way  rejoicing.  The  discomfited  traders  repaired  to 
Fort  Loudon,  and  laid  their  complaints  before  Captain 
Grant,  the  commandant,  who,  inflamed  with  wrath 
and  zealous  for  the  cause  of  justice,  despatched  a 
party  of  soldiers,  seized  several  inrtdcent  persons, 
and  lodged  them  in  the  guard-house.  In  high 
dudgeon  at  such  an  infraction  of  their  liberties, 
the  borderers  sent  messengers  through  the  country, 
calling  upon  all  good  men  to  rise  in  arms.  Three 
hundred  obeyed  the  summons,  and  pitched  their 
camp  on  a  hill  opposite  Fort  Loudon;  a  rare  muster 
of  desperadoes,  yet  observing  a  certain  moderation  in 
their  wildest  acts,  and  never  at  a  loss  for  a  plausi- 
ble reason  to  justify  any  pranks  which  it  might 
please  them  to  exhibit.  By  some  means,  they  con- 
trived to  waylay  and  capture  a  considerable  number 
of  the  garrison,  on  which  the  commandant  conde- 
scended to  send  them  a  flag  of  trucO)  and  offer  an 
exchange  of  prisoners.  Their  object  thus  accom- 
plished, and  their  imprisoned  comrades  restored  to 
them,  the  borderers  dispersed  for  the  present  to  their 
homes.  Soon  after,  however,  upon  the  occurrence  of 
some  fresh  difficulty,  the  commandant,  afraid  or  un- 
able to  apprehend  the  misdoers,  endeavored  to  deprive 


CHAr.XXX]        EXPLOITS  OF  THE  BOBDEREBS. 


543 


them  of  the  power  of  mischief  by  sending  soldiers 
to  their  houses  and  carrying  off  their  rifles.  His  tri- 
umph was  short;  for,  as  he  rode  out  one  afternoon, 
he  fell  into  an  ambuscade  of  countrymen,  who,  dis- 
pensing with  all  forms  of  respect,  seized  the  incensed 
officer,  and  detained  him  in  an  uncomfortable  cap- 
tivity until  the  rifles  were  restored.  From  this  time 
forward,  ruptures  were  repeatedly  occurring  between 
the  troops  and  the  frontiersmen;  and  the  Pennsyl- 
vania border  retained  its  turbulent  character  until 
the  outbretk  of  the  Revolutionary  War.^ 


1  The  account  of  the  seizure  of  the 
Indian  goods  is  derived  chiefly  from 
the  narrative  of  the  ringleader,  SmiUi, 
published  in  Drake's  Tragedies  of 
the  Wilderness,  and  elsewhere.  The 
correspondence  of  Gage  and  John- 
son is  filled  with  allusions  to  this  af- 
fair, and  the  subsequent  proceedings 
of  the  freebooters.  Gage  spares  no 
invectives  against  what  he  calls  the 
licentious  conduct  of  the  frontier  peo- 
ple. In  the  narrative  is  inserted  a 
Dallad,  or  lyrical  efiusion,  written  by 
some  partisan  of  the  frontier  faction, 
and  evidently  regarded  by  Smith  as 
a  signal  triumph  of  the  poetic  art 
He  IS  careful  to  inform  the  reader 
that  the  author  received  his  educa- 
tion in  the  great  city  of  Dublin.  The 
foUowing  melodious  stanzas  embody 
the  chief  action  of  the  piece :  — 

'■  Aitoniihed  at  the  wild  deiicn, 
Frontiwr  inhabitant*  combln'd 

With  brave  eoula  to  atop  their  curler ; 
Although  lome  men  apoitaUz'd, 
Who  flnt  the  grand  attempt  advi.  H, 
The  bold  frontiers  tbey  bravely  stood. 
To  act  for  their  king  and  their  country's  good, 

In  Joint  league,  and  strangers  to  fear. 

"  On  March  the  flflh,  in  sixty-five, 
Tlie  Indian  presents  did  arrive, 

In  long  pomp  ond  cavalcade, 
Near  Sidelong  Hill,  where  in  disguise 
Some  patriots  did  their  train  surprise. 
And  quick  aa  lightning  tumbled  their  loads. 
And  kindled  them  bonfires  in  the  woods. 

And  mostly  burnt  their  whole  brigade.'* 

The  following  is  an  extract  from 


Johnson's  letter  to  the  Board,  dated 
JulylO,  1765:  — 

« I  have  great  cause  to  think  that 
Mr.  Croghan  will  succeed  in  his  en- 
terprise, unless  circumvented  by  the 
artifices  of  the  French,  or  through 
the  late  licentious  conduct  of  our  own 
people.  Although  His  Excellency 
General  Gage  has  written  tu  the 
Ministry  on  that  subject,  yet  I  think 
I  should  not  be  silent  thereupon,  as 
it  may  be  productive  of  very  serious 
consequences. 

"  The  frontier  inhabitants  of  Penn- 
sylvania, Maryland,  and  Virginia, 
ailer  having  attacked  and  destroyed 
the  goods  which  were  going  to  Fort 
Pitt,  (as  in  my  last,)  did  form  them- 
selves into  parties,  threatening  to 
destroy  all  Indians  they  met,  or  all 
white  people  who  dealt  with  them. 
They  likewise  marched  to  Fort  Au- 
gusta, and  from  thence  over  the  West 
branch  of  the  Susquehanna,  beyond 
the  Bounds  of  the  last  purchase  made 
by  the  Proprietaries,  where  they  de- 
clare they  will  form  a  settlement,  in 
defiance  of  Whites  or  Indians.  They 
afterwards  attacked  a  small  party  of 
His  Majesty's  troops  upon  the  Road, 
but  were  happily  obliged  to  retire 
with  the  loss  of  one  or  two  men. 
However,  from  their  conduct  and 
threats  since,  there  is  reason  to  think 
they  will  not  stop  here.  Neither  is 
their  licentiousness  confined  to  the 


-^' 


f 


rn.^ 

<' 

•»  f'-' 

0...* ' 

»•> 

•■ 

t 

s 

!i- 

1 

,  I' 

'j'i'i  1 

!  i' 

fato^ 

mk^ 

HI 


-I- 


644 


RUIN  OP  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE.  [Chap.  XXX 


The  plea  of  necessity,  by  which  the  border  robbers 
endeavored  to  excuse  the  plunder  of  the  caravan,  is 
more  plausible  than  valid,  since  the  traders,  with 
their  goods,  would  not  have  been  allowed  to  leave 
Fort  Pitt  until  all  difficulties  with  the  Indians  had 
been  fully  adjusted.  This  act  of  lawless  violence 
wrought  great  injury  to  Croghan  and  his  mission; 
for  the  property  of  government  had  shared  the  fate 
of  that  belonging  to  the  traders,  and  the  agency 
most  potent  to  gain  the  affections  of  an  Indian 
had  been  completely  paralyzed  in  the  destruction 
of  the  presents.  Croghan  found  means,  however, 
partially  to  repair  his  loss  from  the  storehouse  of 
Fort  Pitt,  where  the  rigor  of  the  season  and  the 
great  depth  of  the  snow  forced  him  to  remain  several 
weeks.  This  cause  alone  would  have  served  to  de- 
tain him;  but  he  was  yet  farther  retarded  by  the 
necessity  of  holding  a  meeting  with  the  Delawares 
and  Shawanoes,  along  whose  southern  borders  he 
would  be  compelled  to  pass.  An  important  object 
of  the  proposed  meeting  was,  to  urge  these  tribes  to 
fulfil  the  promise  they  had  made  during  the  previous 
autumn  to  Colonel  Bouquet,  to  yield  up  their  re- 
maining prisoners,  and  send  deputies  to  treat  of 
peace  with  Sir  William  Johnson ;  engagements  which, 
when  Croghan  arrived  at  the  fort,  were  as  yet  unful- 


Provinces  I  have  mentioned,  the  peo- 
ple of  Carolina  having  cut  off  a  party, 
coming  down  under  a  pass  from  Col. 
Lewis,  of  the  particulars  of  which 
your  Lordships  have  been  doubtless 
mformed. 

"  Your  Lordships  may  easily  con- 
ceive what  effects  this  will  have  upon 
the  Indians,  who  begin  to  be  all  ac- 
quainted therewith.   1  wish  it  may  not 


have  already  gone  too  great  a  length 
to  receive  a  timely  check,  or  prevent 
the  Indians'  Resentment,  who  sec 
themselves  attacked,  threatened,  and 
their  property  invaded,  by  a  set  of 
ignorant,  misled  Rioters,  who  defy 
Government  itself,  and  this  at  a  time 
when  we  have  just  treated  with  some, 
and  are  in  treaty  with  otlier  Na- 
tions." 


tCHAP.  XXX 


CnAP.  XXX.] 


CONGRESS  AT  FORT  PITT. 


545 


border  robbers 
the  caravan,  is 

traders,  with 
owed  to  leave 
e  Indians  had 
iwless   violence 

his  mission; 

hared   the  fate 

d    the    agency 

of   an    Indian 

he   destruction 

cans,   however, 

storehouse  of 

eason  and  the 

remain  several 

served  to  do 

3tarded   by  the 

the   Delawares 

m    borders   he 

iportant  object 

these  tribes  to 

ig  the  previous 

i   up  their  re- 

8    to    treat   of 

gements  which, 

e  as  yet  unful- 


ne  too  great  a  length 
ely  check,  or  prevent 
csentmcnt,  who  see 
;ked,  threatened,  and 
nvaded,  by  a  set  of 
1  Rioters,  who  defy 
3lf,  and  this  at  a  time 
ist  treated  with  some, 
aty  -with  otlier  Na- 


».-f-. 


■rVf'/'^/v?' 


filled,  though,  as   already  mentioned,  they  were   soon 
after  complied  with. 

Immediately  on  his  arrival,  he  had  despatched  mes- 
sengers inviting  the  chiefs  to  a  council;  a  summons 
which  they  obeyed  with  their  usual  reluctance  and  de- 
lay, dropping  in,  band  after  band,  with  such  tardiness 
that  a  month  was  consumed  before  a  sufficient  num- 
ber was  assembled.  Croghan  then  addressed  them, 
showing  the  advantages  of  peace,  and  the  peril  which 
tliey  would  bring  on  their  own  heads  by  a  renewal 
of  the  war,  and  urging  them  to  stand  true  to  their  en- 
gagements, and  send  their  deputies  to  Johnson  as  soon 
as  the  melting  of  the  snows  should  leave  the  forest 
pathways  open.  Several  replies,  all  of  a  pacific  na- 
ture, were  made  by  the  principal  chiefs ;  but  the  most 
remarkable  personage  who  appeared  at  the  council 
was  the  Delaware  prophet  mentioned  in  an  early 
portion  of  the  narrative,  as  having  been  strongly  in- 
strumental in  urging  the  tribes  to  war,  by  means  of 
pretended  or  imaginary  revelations  from  the  Great 
Spirit'  He  now  delivered  a  speech  by  no  means  re- 
markable for  eloquence,  yet  of  most  beneficial  conse- 
quence; for  he  intimated  that  the  Great  Spirit  had 
not  only  revoked  his  sanguinary  mandates,  but  had 
commanded  the  Indians  to  lay  down  the  hatchet,  and 
smoke  the  pipe  of  peace.**  In  spite  of  this  auspicious 
declaration,  in  spite  of  the  chastisement  and  humilia- 
tion of  the  previous  autumn,  Croghan  was  privately 
informed  that  a  large  party  among  the  Indians  still 


1  See  mUe,  p.  158.  of  Indians,  at  Fort  Pitt,  from  the  28th 

2  MS.  Journal  of  the  Transactions  of  of  February,  1765,  to  the  12th  of 
George  Croghan,  Esq.,  deputy  agent  May  following.  In  this  journal  the 
for  Indian  affairs,  with  different  tribes  prophet's  speech  is  given  in  full. 

■                69  TT* 


i 


1: 


I 


It 


••■y 


546 


RUIN  OF  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE. 


[Chap.  XXX. 


i        s^'l^asji: 


13 


remained  balanced  between  their  anger  and  their 
fears,  eager  to  take  up  the  hatchet,  yet  dreading  the 
consequences  which  the  act  might  bring.  Under  this 
cloudy  aspect  of  affairs,  he  was  doubly  gratified  when 
a  party  of  Shawanoe  warriors  arrived,  bringing  with 
them  the  prisoners,  whom  they  had  promised  Colonel 
Bouquet  to  surrender;  and  this  faithful  adherence  to 
their  word,  contrary  alike  to  Croghan's  expectations 
and  to  the  prophecies  of  those  best  versed  in  Indian 
character,  made  it  apparent  that  whatever  might  be 
the  sentiments  of  the  turbulent  among  them,  the 
more  influential  portion  were  determined  on  a  pacific 
attitude.  f"'-'  •■ 

•-^  These  councils,  and  the  previous  delays,  consumed 
so  much  time,  that  Croghan  became  feairful  that  the 
tribes  of  the  Illinois  might,  meanwhile,  commit  them- 
selves by  some  rash  outbreak,  which  would  increase 
the  difficulty  of  reconciliation.  In  view  of  this  dan- 
ger, his  assistant.  Lieutenant  Fraser,  a  young  man 
more  bold  than  prudent,  volunteered  to  go  forward 
in  advance,  leaving  his  principal  to  follow  when  he 
had  settled  affairs  at  Fort  Pitt.  Croghan  assented, 
and  Fraser  departed  with  a  few  attendants.  The 
rigor  of  the  season  had  now  begun  to  relent,  and  the 
ico-lockcd  Ohio  was  flinging  off  its  wintry  fetters. 
Embarked  in  a  birch  canoe,  and  aided  by  the  cm- 
rent,  Fraser  floated  prosperously  downwards  for  a 
thousand  miles,  and  landed  safely  in  the  country  of 
the  Illinois.  Here  he  met  such  a  reception  as  he 
might  have  expected,  very  similar  to  that  which,  dur- 
ing the  autumn  before,  Captain  Morris  had  encoun- 
tered in  the  Miami  village.  In  short,  he  found 
himself  in   a  nest  of  hornets,  and  in  terror  for  his 


Chap.  XXX.]    ALTERED  CONDUCT  OF  THE  FRENCH. 


547 


a  young  man 


life.  Abandoning  the  purposes  of  his  mission,  he 
fled  in  disguise  down  the  Mississippi,  to  seek  refuge 
among  the  French  at  New  Orleans.*  «*; 

Had  Eraser's  rash  attempt  been  made  but  a  few 
weeks  earlier,  his  blood  would  doubtless  have  paid 
the  forfeit;  but,  of  late,  a  change  had  taken  place 
in  the  Illinois.  A  rumor  was  abroad  that  an  Eng- 
lish detachment  was  about  to  descend  the  Ohio,  and 
the  report  had  magical  effect.  The  French  traders, 
before  so  busy  with  their  falsehoods  and  calumnies 
against  the  English,  now  held  their  peace,  dreading 
the  impending  chastisement.  They  no  longer  gave 
arms  and  ammunition  to  the  Indians;  and  when  the 
latter  questioned  them  cfoiserning  the  fabrication  of 
a  French  army  advancing  to  the  rescue,  they  treated 
the  story  as  unfounded,  or  sought  to  evade  the  sub- 
ject. St.  Ange,  too,  and  the  other  officers  of  the 
crown,  confiding  in  the  arrival  of  the  English,  as- 
sumed a  more  decisive  tone,  refusing  to  give  the 
Indians  presents,  telling  them  that  thenceforward 
they  must  trust  to  the  English  for  supplies,  reproving 
them  for  their  designs  against  the  latter,  and  advising 
them  to  remain  at  peace.^    Indeed,  the  Indians  were 


1  MS.  Letter — Aubrj'  to  the  Min- 
ister, July,  1765.  Aubry  makes  him- 
self merry  with  the  fears  of  Fraser ; 
who,  however,  had  the  best  grounds 
for  his  apprehensions,  as  is  sufficient- 
ly clear  from  the  minutes  of  a  council 
held  by  him  with  Pontiac  and  other 
Indians,  at  the  Illinois,  durinsf  tlie 
month  of  April.  The  minutes  referred 
to  are  among  the  Paris  Document^. 

Extract  from  a  Letter  —  Fort  Pitt, 
July  24,  (Pa.  Gaz.  Nos.  1912, 1913  :)— 

"  Pondiac  immediately  collected  all 
the  Indians  under  his  influence  to  the 
Illinois,  and  ordered  the  French  com- 
manding officer  there  to  deliver  up 
these  Englishmen  [Fraser  and  his 
party]  to  him,  as  he  had  prepared  a 


large  kettle  in  which  he  was  deter- 
mined to  boil  them  and  all  other  Eng- 
lishmen that  came  that  way 

Pondiac  told  the  French  that  he  had 
been  informed  of  Mr.  Croghan's  com- 
ing that  way  to  treat  with  the  Indians, 
and  tliat  he  would  keep  his  kettle 
boiling  over  a  large  lire  to  receive 
him  likewise." 

Pontiac  seems  soon  after  to  have 
relented,  for  another  letter,  dated 
New  Orleans,  June  19,  adds,  "He 

f  Fraser]  says  Pondiac  is  a  very  clever 
ellow,  and  had  it  not  been  for  him, 
he  would  never  have  got  away 
alive." 

2  "  Harangue  faitte  i  la  nation  Illi- 
noise  ct  au  Chef  Pondiak  par  M.  de 


I 

i!  i 


Ill 


ill 

V..-' 

«-    'hi 

-it 


I  \ 


548 


II 


W1     Rum  OF  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE. 


-f^-'/ 


[Chap.  XXX. 


in  no  condition  to  renew  the  war.  The  supplies  ob- 
tained from  the  French  had  been  squandered  after 
their  usual  childish  manner,  and  they  were  miserably 
in  want  of  food,  arms,  and  clothing.*  It  is  true 
that,  about  the  time  of  Fraser's  arrival,  a  most  op- 
portune, though  inadequate,  supply  fell  into  their 
hands,  in  the  following  manner:  the  English  officers 
in  the  south,  unable  to  send  troops  up  the  Missis- 
sippi, had  employed  a  Frenchman,  whom  they  had 
secured  in  their  interest,  to  ascend  the  river  with  a 
boat  load  of  goods,  which  he  was  directed  to  dis- 
tribute among  the  Indians,  to  remove  their  prejudice 
against  the  English,  and  pave  the  way  to  reconcilia- 
tion. Intelligence  of  this  movement  reached  the  ears 
of  Pontiac,  who,  though  much  pleased  with  the  ap- 
proaching supplies,  had  no  mind  that  they  should  be 
devoted  to  serve  the  interests  of  his  enemies.  He 
descended  to  the  river  bank  with  a  body  of  his  war- 
riors, and  as  La  Garantais,  the  Frenchman,  landed, 
he  seized  him  and  his  men,  flogged  them  severely, 
robbed  them  of  their  cargo,  and  distributed  the  goods 
with  exemplary  impartiality  among  his  delighted  fol- 
lowers.'' The  supply  fell  far  short  of  their  exigen- 
cies; and  it  is  probable  also  that  the  cargo  consisted 
of  whiskey,  tobacco,  paint,  trinkets,  and  other  articles, 
useless  in  war. 

Notwithstanding  this  good  fortune,  Pontiac  daily 
saw  his  followers  dropping  off  from  their  allegiance; 
for  even  the  boldest  had  lost  heart.     Had  any  thing 

'-■'■■■''•>.■'■■'    '---';  •■  .-^  ^ff-  ■  '^■■'       ■   ,  .  ir  ,!■■_,:■.   .f 

St.  Ange,  Cap.  Commandant  au  pais  was  written  before  the  tidings  of 

dcs  Illinois  pour  S.  M.  T.  C.  au  sujet  D'Abbadie's  death  had  reached  the 

dc  la  guerre  que  Lcs  Indiens  font  aux  Illinois. 

Anglois,  le  18  Avril,  1765."  »  MS.  Letter— Aubry  to  the  Min- 

1  MS.  Letter  -  St.  Anere  to  D'Ab-  ist«r,  July  10,  1765. 
badie,  April  20,  1765.    ^This  letter 


I )     [Chap.  XXX. 


Chap.  XXX.]    PONTIAC— HIS  DESPEEATE  POSITION. 


549 


been  wanting  /•  convince  him  of  the  hopelessness 
of  his  cause,  the  report  of  his  ambassadors  return- 
ing from  New  Orleans  would  have  banished  every 
doubt.  No  record  of  his  interview  with  them  re- 
mains; but  it  is  easy  to  conceive  with  what  chagrin 
he  must  have  learned  that  the  officer  of  France  first 
in  rank  in  all  America  had  refused  to  aid  him, 
and  urged  the  timid  counsels  of  peace.  The  vanity 
of  those  expectations,  which  had  been  the  main- 
spring of  his  enterprise,  now  rose  clear  and  palpa- 
ble before  him ;  and  with  rage  and  bitterness,  he  saw 
the  rotten  foundation  of  his  hopes  sinking  into  dust, 
and  the  whole  structure  of  his  plot  crumbling  in 
ruins  about  him. 

All  was  lost.  His  allies  were  falling  off,  his  fol- 
lowers deserting  him.  To  hold  out  longer  would  be 
destruction,  and  to  fly  was  scarcely  an  easier  task. 
In  the  south  lay  the  Cherokees,  hereditary  enemies 
of  his  people.  In  the  west  were  the  Osages  and 
Missouries,  treacherous  and  uncertain  friends,  and  the 
fierce  and  jealous  Dahcotah.  In  the  east  the  forests 
would  soon  be  filled  with  English  traders,  and  beset 
with  English  troops,  while  in  the  north  his  own 
village  of  Detroit  lay  beneath  the  guns  of  the  victo- 
rious garrison.  He  might,  indeed,  have  found  a  par- 
tial refuge  in*  the  remoter  wfidemess  of  the  upper 
lakes;  but  those  dreary  wastes  would  have  doomed 
him  to  a  life  of  unambitious  exile.  His  resolution 
was  taken.  He  determined  to  accept  the  peace 
which  he  knew  would  be  proffered,  to  smoke  the 
calumet  with  his  triumphant  enemies,  and  patiently 
await  his  hour  of  vengeance.^ 

1  One  of  St.  Ange's  letters  to  Au-    and  motives  ofPontiac  similar  to  tlioso 
bry  contains  views  of  the   designs    expressed  above. 


y 

'* '  ^^^^^^IP ' 

^■■r 

|i 


M  I 


\i' 


; 


f 


1  ( 


I'V 


>-; 


»s 


J  I 


^*>; 


650 


RUIN  OF  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE.  [Chap.  XXX. 


The  conferences  at  Fort  Pitt  concluded,  Croghan 
left  that  place  on  the  fifteenth  of  May,  and  em- 
barked on  the  Ohio,  accompanied  by  several  Dela- 
ware and  Shawanoe  deputies,  whom  he  had  per- 
suaded those  newly-reconciled  tribes  to  send  with  him, 
for  the  fiui;herance  of  his  mission.  At  the  mouth  of 
the  Scioto,  he  was  met  by  a  band  of  Shawanoe  war- 
riors, who,  in  compliance  with  a  message  previously 
sent  to  them,  delivered  into  his  hands  seven  intriguing 
Frenchmen,  who  for  some  time  past  had  lived  in 
their  villages.  Thence  he  pursued  his  voyage  smooth- 
ly and  prosperously,  imtil,  on  the  eighth  of  June, 
he  reached  a  spot  a  little  below  the  mouth  of  the 
Wabash.  Here  he  landed  with  his  party ;  when  sud- 
denly the  hideous  war-whoop,  the  explosion  of  mus- 
ketry, and  the  whistling  of  arrows  greeted  him  from 
the  covert  of  the  neighboring  thickets.  His  men  fell 
thick  about  him.  Three  Indians  and  two  white  men 
were  shot  dead  on  the  spot;  most  of  the  remainder 
were  wounded ;  and  on  the  next  instant  the  survivors 
found  themselves  prisoners  in  the  hands  of  eighty 
yelling  Kickapoos,  who  plundered  them  of  all  they 
had.  No  sooner,  however,  was  their  prey  fairly  within 
their  clutches,  than  the  cowardly  assailants  began  to 
apologize  for  what  they  had  done,  saying  it  was  all 
a  mistake,  and  that  the  French  had  set  them  on  by 
telling  them  that  the  Indians  who  accompanied  Cro- 
ghan were  Cherokees,  their  mortal  enemies;  excuses 
utterly  without  foundation,  for  the  Kickapoos  had 
dogged  the  party  for  several  days,  and  perfectly  un- 
derstood its  character.^ 


1  A  few  days  before,  a  boy  belong-  proved  afterwards  tliat  he  had  been 
ing  to  Croghan'e  party  had  been  lost,  seized  by  tlie  Kickapoo  warriors,  and 
as  was  supposed,  in  the  woods.    It    was  still  prisoner  among  them  at  tlie 


Cbap.  XXX.] 


CROGmVN  AT  OUATANON. 


551 


It  is  superfluous  to  inquire  into  the  causes  of  this 
attack.  No  man  practically  familiar  with  Indian 
character  need  be  told  the  impossibility  of  foreseeing 
to  what  strange  acts  the  wayward  impulses  of  this 
murder-losing  race  may  prompt  them.  Unstable  as 
water,  capricious  as  the  winds,  they  seem  in  some  of 
their  moods  like  ungovemed  children  fired  with  the 
instincts  of  devils.  In  the  present  case,  they  knew 
that  they  hated  the  English — knew  that  they  wanted 
scalps ;  and  thinking  nothing  of  the  consequences, 
they  seized  the  first  opportunity  to  gratify  their  rabid 
longing.  This  done,  they  thought  it  best  to  avert  any 
probable  effects  of  their  misconduct  by  such  false- 
hoods as  might  suggest  themselves  to  their  invention. 

Still  apologizing  for  what  they  had  done,  but  by 
no  means  suffering  their  prisoners  to  escape,  they 
proceeded  up  the  Wabash,  to  the  little  French  fort 
and  settlement  of  Vincennes,  where,  to  his  great  joy, 
Croghan  found  among  the  assembled  Indians  some 
of  his  former  friends  and  acquaintance.  They  re- 
ceived him  kindly,  and  sharply  rebuked  the  Kicka- 
poos,  who,  on  their  part,  seemed  much  ashamed  and 
crestfallen.  From  Vincennes  the  English  were  con- 
ducted, in  a  sort  of  honorable  captivity,  up  the  river 
to  Ouatanon,  where  they  arrived  on  the  twenty- 
third,  fifteen  days  after  the  attack,  and  where  Cro- 
ghan was  fortunate  enough  to  find  a  great  number 
of  his  former  Indian  friends,  who  received  him,  to 
appearance  at  least,  with  much  cordiality.  He  took 
up  his  quarters  in  the  fort,  where  there  was  at  this 
time  no  garrison,  a  mob  of  French  traders  and  Indians 


,i 


'.%. 


\  '" 


time  of  the  attack.    They  must  have    of    Croghan   and   his   companions, 
learned  from  him  the  true  character    — MS.  Gage  Papers. 


1i 

'4 


*3 
i< 
,1 


\;J 


,    1 


•*'.>>*^ 


•s. 


I  A 


'        i    'J 


(  I 


652 


RUIN  OP  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE.  [Chap.  XXX. 


being  the  only  tenants  of  the  place.  For  several 
days,  his  time  was  engrossed  with  receiving  deputa- 
tion after  deputation  from  the  various  tribes  and 
sub-tribes  of  the  neighborhood,  smoking  pipes  of 
peace,  making  and  hearing  speeches,  and  shaking 
hands  with  greasy  warriors,  who,  one  and  all,  were 
strong  in  their  professions  of  good  will,  promising 
not  only  to  regard  the  English  as  their  friends,  but 
to  aid  them,  if  necessary,  in  taking  possession  of  the 
Illinois.  V  .«jc 

While  these  amicable  conferences  were  in  progress, 
a  miscreant  Frenchman  came  from  the  Mississippi 
>vith  a  message  from  a  chief  of  that  region,  urging 
the  Indians  of  Ouatanon  to  burn  the  Englishman 
'  alive.  Of  this  proposal  the  Indians  sonified  their 
strong  disapprobation,  and  assured  the  startled  envoy 
that  they  would  stand  his  friends  —  professions  the 
sincerity  of  which,  happily  for  him,  was  confirmed 
by  the  strong  guaranty  of  their  fears. 

The  next  arrival  was  that  of  Maisonville,  a  mes- 
senger from  St.  Ange,  requesting  Croghan  to  come 
to  Fort  Chartres,  to  adjust  affairs  in  that  quarter. 
The  invitation  was  in  accordance  with  Croghan's 
designs,  and  he  left  the  fort'  on  the  following  day, 
attended  by  Maisonville,  and  a  concourse  of  the  Oua- 
tanon Indians,  who,  far  from  regarding  him  as  their 
prisoner,  were  now  studious  to  show  him  every  mark 
of  respect.  He  had  advanced  but  a  short  distance 
into  the  forest  when  he  met  Pontiac  himself,  who  was 
on  his  way  to  Ouataiion,  followed  by  a  numerous  train 
of  chiefs  and  warriors.  He  gave  his  hand  to  the 
English  envoy,  and  both  parties  returned  together  to 
the  fort.  Its  narrow  precincts  were  now  crowded 
with  Indians,  a  perilous  multitude,  dark,  malignant, 


Chap.  XXX.] 


PONTIAC  OFFERS  PEACE. 


553 


t    /  V 


inscrutable;  and  it  behoved  the  Englishman  to  be 
wary  in  his  dealings  with  them,  since  a  breath 
might  kindle  afresh  the  wildfire  in  their  hearts. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  chiefs  and  warriors,  Pontiac 
offered  the  calumet  and  belt  of  peace,  and  professed 
his  concurrence  with  the  chiefs  of  Ouatanon  in  the 
friendly  sentiments  which  they  expressed  towards  the 
English.  The  French,  he  added,  had  deceived  him, 
telling  him  and  his  people  that  the  English  meant 
to  enslave  the  Indians  of  the  Illinois,  and  turn 
loose  upon  them  their  enemies  the  Cherokees.  It 
w;as  this  which  drove  him  to  arms;  and  now  that  he 
knew  the  story  to  be  false,  he  would  no  longer 
stand  in  the  path  of  the  English.  Yet  they  must 
not  imagine  that,  in  taking  possession  of  the  French 
forts,  they  gained  any  right  to  the  country;  for  the 
French  had  never  bought  the  land,  and  lived  upon 
it  by  sufferance  only. 

As  this  meeting  with  Pontiac  and  the  Illinois 
chiefs  made  it  needless  for  Croghan  to  advance 
farther  on  his  western  journey,  he  now  bent  his 
footsteps  towards  Detroit,  and,  followed  by  Pontiac 
and  many  of  the  principal  chiefs,  crossed  over  to 
Fort  Miami,  and  thence  descended  the  Maumee,  hold- 
ing conferences  at  the  several  villages  which  he 
passed  on  his  way.  On  the  seventeenth  of  August, 
he  reached  Detroit,  where  he  found  a  great  gather- 
ing of  Indians,  Ottawas,  Pottawattamies,  and  Ojib- 
was ;  some  encamped  about  the  fort,  and  others 
along  the  banks  of  the  River  Rouge.  They  obeyed 
liis  summons  to  a  meeting  with  ready  alacrity, 
partly  from  a  desire  to  win  the  good  graces  of  a 
potent  and  victorious  enemy,  and  partly  from  the 
importunate   craving  for  liquor  and   presents,  which 


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^^^H^^H[ 

¥■ 


.1      I 


:|i' 


554 


EUm  OF  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE.  [Chap.  XXX. 


never  slumbers  in  an  Indian  breast.  Numerous 
meetings  were  held,  and  the  old  council-hall  where 
Pontiac  had  essayed  his  scheme  of  abortive  treachery 
was  now  crowded  with  repentant  warriors,  anxious, 
by  every  form  of  submission,  to  appease  the  con- 
queror. Their  ill  success,  their  fears  of  chastise- 
ment, and  the  miseries  they  had  endured  from  the 
long  suspension  of  the  fur-trade,  had  banished  from 
their  minds  every  thought  of  hostility.  They  were 
glad,  they  said,  that  the  dark  clouds  were  now  dis- 
persing, and  the  sunshine  of  peace  once  more  re- 
turning;  and  since  all  the  nations  to  the  sunrising 
had  taken  their  great  father  the  King  of  England 
by  the  hand,  they  also  wished  to  do  the  same. 
They  now  saw  clearly  that  the  French!  were  indeed 
conquered;  and  thenceforth  they  would  listen  no 
more  to  the  whistling  of  evil  birds,  but  lay  down 
the  war-hatchet,  and  sit  quiet  on  their  mats.  Among 
those  who  appeared  to  make  or  renew  their  submis- 
sion was  the  Grand  Sauteur,  the  sanguinary  chief 
who  had  led  the  massacre  at  Michillimackinac,  and 
who,  a  few  years  after,  expiated  his  evil  deeds  by  a 
bloody  death.  He  now  pretended  great  regret  for 
what  he  had  done.  "We  red  people,"  he  said,  "are 
a  very  jealous  and  foolish  people;  but,  father,  there 
are  some  among  the  white  men  worse  than  we  are, 
and  they  have  told  us  lies,  and  deceived  us.  There- 
fore we  hope  you  will  take  pity  on  our  women  and 
children,  and  grant  us  peace."  A  band  of  Potta- 
wattamies  from  St.  Joseph's  were  also  present,  and, 
after  excusing  themselves  for  their  past  conduct  by 
the  stale  plea  of  the  uncontrollable  temper  of  their 
young  men,  their  orator  proceeded  as  follows:  — 
"  We   are   no   more  than  wild  creatures  to   you, 


Ch  r  .<CSX.] 


CONFERENCES  AT  DETROIT. 


555 


fathers,  in  understanding ;  therefore  we  request  you 
to  forgive  the  past  follies  of  our  young  people,  and 
receive  us  for  your  children.  Since  you  have  thrown 
down  our  former  father  on  his  back,  we  have  been 
wandering  in  the  dark,  like  blind  people.  Now  you 
have  dispersed  all  this  darkness,  which  hung  over 
the  heads  of  the  several  tribes,  and  have  accepted 
them  for  your  children,  we  hope  you  will  let  us 
partake  with  them  the  light,  that  our  women  and 
children  may  enjoy  peace.  We  beg  you  to  forget 
all  that  is  past.  By  this  belt  we  remove  all  evil 
thoughts  from  your  hearts.  ■ 

"  Fathers,  when  we  formerly  came  to  visit  our 
fathers  the  French,  they  always  sent  us  home  joy- 
ful; and  we  hope  you,  fathers,  will  have  pity  on 
our  women  and  young  men,  who  are  in  gre^t  want 
of  necessaries,  and  not  let  us  go  home  to  our  towns 
ashamed." 

On  the  twenty-seventh  of  August,  Croghan  held  a 
meeting  with  the  Ottawas,  and  the  other  tribes  of 
Detroit  and  Sandusky;  when,  adopting  their  own 
figurative  language,  he  addressed  them  in  the  follow- 
ing speech,  in  which,  as  often  happened  when  white 
men  borrowed  the  tongue  of  the  forest  orator,  he 
lavished  a  more  unsparing  profusion  of  imagery  than 
the  Indians  themselves :  —  -        - 

"Children,  we  are  very  glad  to  see  so  many  of 
you  here  present  at  your  ancient  council-fire,  which 
has  been  neglected  for  some  time  past;  since  then, 
high  winds  have  blown,  and  raised  heavy  clouds 
over  your  country.  I  now,  by  this  belt,  rekindle 
your  ancient  fire,  and  throw  dry  wood  upon  it,  that 
the  blaze  may  ascend  to  heaven,  so  that  all  nations 


1        1, 


<q 


556 


RUIN  OP  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE. 


[Chap.  XXX, 


F 
t 

•' 
( 
t 

r 

™ 

J 

A-  .ji 


4 


may  see  it,  and  know  that  you  live  in  peace   and 
tranquillity  with  your  fathers  the  English. 

"  By  this  belt  I  disperse  all  the  black  clouds  from 
over  your  heads,  that  the  sun  may  shine  clear  on 
your  women  and  children,  that  those  unborn  may 
enjoy  the  blessings  of  this  general  peace,  now  so 
happily  settled  between  your  fathers  the  English 
and  you,  and  all  your  younger  brethren  to  the  sun- 
setting, 

"Children,  by  this  belt  I  gather  up  all  the  bones 
of  your  deceased  friends,  and  bury  them  deep  in 
the  ground,  that  the  buds  and  sweet  flowers  of  the 
earth  may  grow  over  them,  that  we  may  not  see 
them  any  more. 
J^  "Children,  with  this  belt  I  take  thei  hatchet  out 
of  your  hands,  and  pluck  up  a  large  tree,  and  bury 
it  deep,  so  that  it  may  never  be  found  any  more; 
and  I  plant  the  tree  of  peace,  which  all  our  chil- 
dren may  sit  under,  and  smoke  in  peace  with  their 
fathers. 

"Children,  we  have  made  a  road  from  the  sun- 
rising  to  the  sunsetting.  I  desire  that  you  will  pre- 
serve that  road  good  and  pleasant  to  travel  upon, 
that  we  may  all  share  the  blessings  of  this  happy 
union." 

On  the  following  day,  Pontiac  spoke  in  behalf  of 
the  several  nations  assembled  at  the  council. 

"Father,  we  have  all  smoked  out  of  this  pipe  of 
peace.  It  is  your  children's  pipe;  and  as  the  war  is 
all  over,  and  the  Great  Spirit  and  Giver  of  Light, 
who  has  made  the  earth  and  every  thing  therein, 
has  brought  us  all  together  this  day  for  our  mutual 
good,   I    declare  to   all  nations  that  I  have   settled 


\^ 


Ohaf.  XXX.1 


PEACE  SPEECH  OF  PONTIAC. 


557 


my  peace  with  you  before  I  came  here,  and  now 
deliver  my  pipe  to  be  sent  to  Sir  William  Johnson, 
that  he  may  know  I  have  made  peace,  and  taken 
the  King  of  England  for  my  father,  in  presence  of 
all  the  nations  now  assembled;  and  whenever  any 
of  those  nations  go  to  visit  him,  they  may  smoke 
out  of  it  with  him  in  peace.  Fathers,  we  are 
obliged  to  you  for  lighting  up  our  old  council-fire 
for  us,  and  desiring  us  to  return  to  it;  but  we  are 
now  settled  on  the  Miami  River,  not  far  from 
hence:  whenever  you  want  us,  you  will  find  us 
there."  ^ 

"  Our  people,"  he  added,  "  love  liquor,  and  if  we 
dwelt  near  you  in  our  old  village  of  Detroit,  our 
warriors  would  be  always  drunk,  and  quarrels  would 
arise  between  us  and  you."  Drunkenness  was,  in 
truth,  the  bane  of  the  whole  unhappy  race;  but 
Pontiac,  too  thoroughly  an  Indian  in  his  virtues  and 


1  Journal  of  George  Croghan,  on 
his  journey  to  the  Illinois,  1765. 
This  journal  has  been  twice  pub- 
lished —  in  the  appendix  to  Butler's 
History  of  Kentucky,  and  in  the 
«  Pioneer  History  "  of  Dr.  Hildreth. 
A  manuscript  copy  also  may  be 
found  in  the  office  of  tho  secretaiy 
of  state  at  Albany.  Dr.  Hildrem 
omits  the  speech  of  Croghan  to  the 
Indians,  which  is  given  above  as 
affording  a  better  example  of  the 
forms  of  speech  appropriate  to  an 
Indian  peace  harangue,  than  the 
genuine  productions  of  the  Indians 
Siemselves,  who  are  less  apt  to  in- 
dulge in  such  a  redundancy  of  met- 
aphor. 

A  language  extremely  deficient  in 
words  of  general  and  abstract  signifi- 
cation renders  the  use  of  figures 
indispensable ;  and  it  is  from  this 
cause,  above  all  others,  that  the  flow- 
ers of  Indian  rhetoric  derive  their 
origin.    In  the  work  of  Heckewelder 


will  be  found  a  list  of  numerous  fig- 
urative expressions  appropriate  to 
the  various  occasions  or  public  and 
private  intercourse  —  forms  which 
are  seldom  departed  firom,  and  which 
are  often  found  identical  among 
tribes  speaking  languages  radically 
distinct  Thus,  among  both  Iroquois 
and  Algonquins,  the  "whistling  of 
evil  birds  "  is  the  invariable  expres- 
sion to  denote  evil  tidings  or  bad 
advice. 

The  Indians  are  much  pleased 
when  white  men  whom  they  respect 
adopt  their  peculiar  symbolical  lan- 
guage— a  circumstance  of  which  the 
Jesuit  missionaries  did  not  fail  to 
avail  themselves.  "These  people," 
says  Father  Le  Jeune,  "  being  great 
orators,  and  often  using  allegories 
and  metaphors,  our  fathers,  in  order 
to  attract  them  to  God,  adapt  them- 
selves to  their  custom  of  speaking, 
which  delights  them  very  much,  see- 
ing we  succeed  as  well  as  they." 

TTTT  ♦ 


■■    M 


558 


RUIN  OF  THE  INDIAN  CAUSE.  [Chap.  XXX. 


•* '  ... 


M»  ii/m  to  be  free  firom  its  destructive  taint,  con- 
cluded h'm  spf^ch  with  the  common  termination  of 
an  Indian  hiirangMe,  and  desired  that  the  rum  barrel 
might  be  opened,  aud  his  thirsty  warriors  allowe<l  to 
driiik. 

At  the  end  of  September,  having  brought  these 
protracted  coni^^^nces  to  a  close,  Croghan  left  De- 
troit, and  departed  for  Niagara,  whence,  after  a  short 
delay,  he  passed  eastward,  to  report  the  results  of 
his  mission  to  the  commander-in-chief  But  before 
leaving  the  Indian  country,  he  exacted  from  Pontiac 
a  promise  that  in  the  spring  he  would  descend  in 
Oswego,  and,  in  behalf  of  the  tribes  lately  br.u('(.i 
in  his  league,  conclude  a  treaty  of  peace  rind  amity 
with  Sir  William  Johnson.* 

Croghan's  eflforts  had  been  attended  with  signal 
success.  The  tribes  of  the  west,  of  late  bristling  in 
defiance,  and  hot  for  fight,  had  craved  forgiveness, 
and  proffered  the  peaceful  calumet.  The  war  was 
over;  the  last  flickerings  of  that  wide  conflagration 
had  died  awaj  :  but  the  embers  still  glowed  beneath 
the  ashes,  and  fuel  and  a  breath  alone  were  wanting 
to  rekindle  those  desolating  fires. 

In  the  mean  time,  a  hundred  Highlanders  of  the 
42d  Begiment,  those  veterans  whose  battle-cry  had 
echoed  over  the  bloodiest  fields  of  America,  had  left 
Fort  Pitt  under  command  of  Captain  Sterling,  and, 
descending  the  Ohio,  undeterred  by  the  rigor  of  the 


1  In  a  letter  to  Ga^j^e,  without  a 
date,  but  sent  in  the  same  enclosure 
as  his  journal,  Croghan  gives  his  im- 
pression of  Pontiac  in  we  following 
words :  — 

"Pondiac  is  a  shrewd,  sensible 
Indian,  of  few  words,  and  commands 
u;ore  respect  among  his  own  nation 


thanpsv  tird';'  '  •;  n  saw  c  "  .0 
amoi  '  fvia  ontk  u  *i>e.  He,  und  all 
the  pnucipal  men  of  those  nations, 
seem  at  present  to  be  convinced  that 
the  French  had  a  view  of  interest  in 
stirring  up  the  late  differences  be- 
tween his  majesty's  subjects  and 
them,  and  call  it  a  beaver  war." 


CnAP.XXX]        THE  ENGLISH  AT  THE  ILLINOIS. 


559 


season,  arrived  at  Fort  i  'liortres  just  as  the  snows 
of  early  winter  began  tu  whiten  the  naked  forests.* 
The  flag  of  France  dc  '^nded  from  the  rampart; 
and  with  the  stern  rourtesics  of  war,  St.  Ange 
yielded  up  his  post,  ilio  citadel  of  the  Illinois, 
to  its  new  masters.  In  that  act  was  consummated 
the  double  triumph  of  British  power  in  America. 
England  had  crushed  her  hereditary  foe ;  and  France, 
in  iter  fall,  had  left  to  irretrievable  ruin  the  savage 
'^b  ;^  to  whom  her  policy  and  self-interest  had  lent 
a  tr.insient  support.  ; 

1  MS.  Gage  Papen.  M.  Nicol-  mistake.  Pontiac'a  reconciliation 
let,  in  speaking  or  the  arrival  of  had  already  taken  place,  and  ho 
the  British  troops,  says,  "At  this  had  abandoned  all  taouglita  of  re- 
news  Pontiac  raved."     This  is  a  sistance. 


'T; 


,*,,, 


iiiMV.u 


i 


f 


I 


ri 


M 


'■^? 


i 


r 

r 
I 
i 


I 


CHAPTER    XXXI. 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


vlrXk'^iU':  nvi'J:  -i  I'^li! 


The  winter  passed  quietly  away.  Already  the 
Indians  began  to  feel  the  blessings  of  returning 
peace  in  the  partial  reopening  of  the  fur-trade; 
and  the  famine  and  nakedness,  the  misery  and  death, 
which  through  the  previous  season  had  been  rife  in 
their  encampments,  were  exchanged  for  comparative 
comfort  and  abundance.  With  many  precautions, 
and  in  meagre  allowances,  the  traders  had  been  per- 
mitted to  throw  their  goods  into  the  Indian  market, 
and  the  starving  hunters  were  no  longer  left,  as 
many  of  them  had  been,  to  gain  precarious  suste- 
nance by  the  bow,  the  arrow,  and  the  lance — 
the  half-forgotten  weapons  of  their  fathers.  Some 
troubles  arose  along  the  frontiers  of  Pennsylvania 
and  Virginia.  The  reckless  borderers,  in  contempt 
of  common  humanity  and  prudence,  murdered  sev- 
eral straggling  Indians,  and  enraged  others  by  abuse 
and  insult;  but  these  outrages  could  not  obliterate 
the  remembrance  of  recent  chastisement,  and  for  the 
present,  at  least,  the  injured  warriors  forbore  to 
draw  down  the  fresh  vengeance  of  their  destroyers. 

Spring  returned,  and  Pontiac  remembered  the 
promise  he.  had  made  to  visit  Sir  William  Johnson 
at  Oswego.     He  left  his  encampment  on  the  Maumee, 


accompanied  by  his   chiefs,  and   by   an   Eiigl'-s^^a^^ 


^Xl.kJAAAAA«.«AA 


Chap.  XXXI.] 


PONTIAC  AT  OSWEGO. 


561 


named  Crawford,  a  man  of  vigor  and  resolution,  who 
had  been  appointed,  by  the  superintendent,  to  the 
troublesome  office  of  attending  the  Indian  deputation, 
and  supplying  their  wants.^ 

We  may  well  imagine  with  what  bitterness  of 
mood  the  defeated  war-chief  urged  his  canoe  along 
the  margin  of  Lake  Erie,  and  gazed  upon  the  hori- 
zon-bounded waters,  and  the  lofty  shores,  green  with 
primeval  verdure.  Little  could  he  have  dreamed, 
and  little  could  the  wisest  of  that  day  have  imagined, 
that,  within  the  space  of  a  single  human  life,  that 
lonely  lake  would  be  studded  with  the  sails  of  com- 
merce; that  cities  and  villages  would  rise  upon  the 
ruins  of  the  forest;  and  that  the  poor  mementoes  of 
his  lost  race  —  the  wampum  beads,  the  rusty  tomar 
hawk,  and  the  arrowhead  of  stone,  turned  up  by  the 
ploughshare  —  would  become  the  wonder  of  school- 
boys, and  the  prized  relics  of  the  antiquary's  cab- 
inet. Yet  it  needed  no  prophetic  eye  to  foresee  that, 
sooner  or  later,  the  doom  must  come.  The  star  of 
his  people's  destiny  was  fading  from  the  sky,  and, 
to  a  mind  like  his,  the  black  and  withering  future 
must  have  stood  revealed  in  all  its  desolation. 

The  birchen  flotUla  gained  the  outlet  of  Lake 
Erie,  and,  shooting  downwards  with  the  stream, 
landed  beneath  the  palisades  of  Fort  Schlosser. 
The  chiefs  passed  the  portage,  and,  once  more  em- 
barking, pushed  out  upon  Lake  Ontario.  Soon  their 
goal  was  reached,  and  the  cannon  boomed  hollow 
salutation  from  the  batteries  of  Oswego. 

Here  they  found  Sir  William  Johnson  waiting  to 
receive  them,  attended  by  the  chief  sachems  of  the 


::i!  ■•■'■■■   , 


1' 


71 


riluBuii  rupcn). 


m 
f"»i 


<1 


iJ 


!) 


....  i.„ 


562 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap  XXXI. 


Iroquois,  whom  he  had  invited  to  the  spot,  that 
their  presence  might  give  additional  weight  and 
solemnity  to  the  meeting.  As  there  was  no  building 
large  enough  to  receive  so  numerous  a  concourse,  a 
canopy  of  green  boughs  was  erected  to  shade  the 
assembly  from  the  sun;  and  thither,  on  the  twenty- 
third  of  July,  repaired  the  chiefs  and  warriors  of 
the  several  nations.  Here  stood*  the  tall  figure  of 
Sir  William  Johnson,  surrounded  by  civil  and  mil- 
itary officers,  clerks,  and  interpreters,  while  before 
him  reclined  the  painted  sachems  of  the  Iroquois, 
and  the  great  Ottawa  wax-chief,  with  his  dejected 
followers.  Of,'-  ^  \)-.:     i^*v.  -^J 

Johnson  opened  the  meeting  with  the  usua^  for- 
malities, presenting  his  auditors  with  a  belt  of  •'a  'iin- 
pum  to  wipe  the  tears  from  their  eyes,  wiiii  another 
to  cover  the  bones  of  their  relatives,  another  to 
open  their  ears  that  they  might  hear,  and  another 
to  clear  their  throats  that  they  might  speak  with 
ease.  Then,  amid  solemn  silence,  Pontiac's  great 
peace-pipe  was  lighted  and  passed  round  the  assem- 
bly, each  man  present  inhalmg  a  whiff  of  the  sacred 
smoke.  These  tedious  forms,  together  with  a  few 
speeches  of  compliment,  consumed  the  whole  morn- 
ing; for  this  savage  people,  on  whose  supposed  sim- 
plicity poets  and  rhetoricians  have  lavished  their 
praises,  may  challenge  the  world  to  outmatch  their 
Jbigoted  adherence  to  usage  and  ceremonial. 

On  the  following  day,  the  council  began  in  earnest, 
and  Sir  William  Johnson  addressed  Pontiac  and  his 
attendant  chiefs. 

"Children,  I  bid  you  heartily  welcome  to  this 
place ;  and  I  trust  that  the  Great  Spirit  will  permit 
us  often  to  meet  together  in  friendship,  for  I  have 


[Chap  XXXI, 


Chap.  XXXI.]    SPEECH  OF  SIR  WILLIAM  JOHNSON. 


563 


now  opened  the  door  and  cleared  the  road,  that  all 
nations  may  come  hither  from  the  sunsetting.  This 
belt  of  wampum  confirms  my  words. 

"  Children,  it  gave  me  much  pleasure  to  find  that 
you  who  are  present  behaved  so  well  last  year,  and 
treated  in  so  fiiendiy  a  manner  Mr.  Croghan,  one 
of  my  deputies,  and  that  you  expressed  such  con- 
cern for  the  bad  behavior  of  those,  who,  in  order  to 
obstruct  the  good  work  of  peace,  assaulted  and 
wounded  him,  and  killed  some  of  his  party,  both 
whites  and  Indians;  a  thing  before  unknown,  and 
contrary  to  the  laws  and  customs  of  aU  nations. 
This  would  have  drawn  down  our  strongest  resent- 
ment upon  those  who  were  guilty  of  so  heinous  a 
crime,  were  it  not  for  the  great  lenity  and  kindness 
of  your  English  father,  who  does  not  delight  in 
punishing  those  who  repent  sincerely  of  their  faults. 

"  Children,  I  have  now,  with  the  approbation  of 
General  Gage,  (your  father's  chief  warrior  in  this 
country,)  invited  you  here  in  order  to  confirm  and 
strengthen  your  proceedings  with  Mr.  Croghan  last 
year.  I  hope  that  you  will  remember  all  that  then 
passed,  and  I  desire  that  you  will  often  repeat  it 
to  your  young  people,  and  keep  it  fresh  in  your 
minds. 

"Children,  you  begin  already  to  see  the  fruits  of 
peace,  from  the  number  of  traders  and  plenty  of 
goods  at  all  the  garrisoned  posts ;  and  our  enjoying 
the  peaceable  possession  of  the  Illinois  will  be 
found  of  great  advantage  to  the  Indians  in  that 
country.  You  likewise  see  that  proper  officers,  men 
of  honor  and  probity,  are  appointed  to  reside  at  the 
posts,  to  prevent  abuses  in  trade,  to  hear  your  com- 
plaints, and  to  lay  before  me  such  of  them  as  they 


i 


'r' 


Vf 


■•/> 


564 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XXXI. 


I 


r^' 


cannot  redress.^  Interpreters  are  likewise  sent  for 
the  assistance  of  each  of  them;  and  smiths  are  sent 
to  the  posts  to  repair  your  arms  and  implements. 
All  this,  which  is  attended  with  a  great  expense,  is 
now  done  by  the  great  king,  your  father,  as  a  proof 
of  his  regard;  so  that,  casting  from  you  all  jealousy 
and  apprehension,  you  should  now  strive  with  each 
other  who  should  show  the  most  gratitude  to  this 
best  of  princes.  I  do  now,  therefore,  confirm  the 
assurances  which  I  give  you  of  his  majesty's  good 
will,  and  do  insist  on  your  casting  away  all  evil 
thoughts,  and  shutting  your  ears  against  all  flyii\q 
idle  reports  of  bad  people." 

The  rest  of  Johnson's  speech  was  occupied  in 
explaining  to  his  hearers  the  new  arrangements  for 
the  regulation  of  the  fur-trade;  in  exhorting  them 
to  forbear  from  retaliating  the  injuries  they  might 
receive  from  reckless  white  men,  who  would  meet 
with  due  punishment  from  their  own  countrymen; 
and  in  urging  them  to  deliver  up  to  justice  those 
of  their  people  who  might  be  guilty  of  crimes 
against  the  English.  "  Children,"  he  concluded,  "  I 
now,  by  this  belt,  turn  your  eyes  to  the  sunrising, 
where  you  will  always  find  me  your  sincere  friend. 
From  me  you  will  always  hear  what  is  true  and 
good;  and  I  charge  you  never  more  to  listen  to 
those  evil  birds,  who  come,  with  lying  tongues,  to 
lead  you  astray,  and  to  make  you  break  the  solemn 
engagements  which  you  have  entered  into  in  presence 


1  The  lords  of  trade  had  recently  their  traffic  under  the  eye  of  proper 

adopted  a  new  plan  for  the  manage-  officers,  instead  of  ranging  at  will, 

nient  of  Indian  affairs,  the  principal  without  supervision  or  control,  among 

feature  of  wliich  was  the  confine-  the  Indian  villages.    It  was  found 

mcnt  of  the  traders  to  the  military  extremely  difficult   to   enforce  this 

posts,  whore   they    would   conduct  regulation. 


Chap.  XXXI.]      PONTIAC'S  REPLY  TO  JOHNSON. 


565 


of  the  Great  Spirit,  with  the  king  your  father  and 
the  English  people.  Be  strong,  then,  and  keep  fast 
hold  of  the  chain  of  friendship,  that  your  children, 
following  your  example,  may  live  happy  and  prosper- 
ous lives." 

Pontiac  made  a  brief  reply,  and  promised  to  return 
on  the  morrow  an  answer  in  full.  The  meeting  then 
broke  up.  s 

The  council  o^  the  next  day  was  opened  by  the 
Wyandot  chief,  Teata,  in  a  short  and  formal  address ; 
at  the  conclusion  of  which  Pontiac  himself  arose, 
and  addressed  the  superintendent  in  the  following 
words: —  . 

"Father,  we  thank  the  Great  Spirit  for  giving  us 
so  fine  a  day  to  meet  upon  such  great  affairs.  I 
speak  in  the  name  of  all  the  nations  to  the  west- 
ward, of  whom  I  am  the  master.  It  is  the  will  of 
the  Great  Spirit  that  we  should  meet  here  to-day; 
and  before  him  I  now  take  you  by  the  hand.  I 
call  him  to  witness  that  I  speak  from  my  heart ; 
for  since  I  took  Colonel  Croghan  by  the  hand  last 
year,  I  have  never  let  go  my  hold,  for  I  see  that  the 
Great  Spirit  will  have  us  friends,  ^^d    iK^iti'^^    rv/i.^jjui 

"Father,  when  our  great  father  of  France  was  in 
this  country,  I  held  him  fast  by  the  hand.  Now 
that  he  is  gone,  I  take  you,  my  English  father,  by 
the  hand,  in  the  name  of  all  the  nations,  and  prom- 
ise to  keep  this  covenant  as  long  as  I  shall  live." 

Here  he  delivered  a  large  belt  of  wampum. 

"  Father,  when  you  address  me,  it  is  the  same  as 
if  you  addressed  all  the  nations  of  the  Avest.  Father, 
this  belt  is  to  cover  and  strengthen  our  chain  of 
friendship,  and  to  show  you  that,  if  any  nation  shall 

vv 


it 
I  If; 


1 


I 


|,f 


.l 


■'.^ 


t  < 


;.#;? 


566 


•'^' 


DEATH  or  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XXXI. 


lift  the  hatchet  against  our  English  brethren,  we 
shall  be  the  first  to  feel  it  and  resent  it." 

Pontiac  next  took  up  in  succession  the  various 
points  touched  upon  in  the  speech  of  the  superin- 
tendent, expressing  in  all  things  a  full  compliance 
with  his  wishes.  The  succeeding  days  of  the  confer- 
ence were  occupied  with  matters  of  detail  relating 
chiefly  to  the  fur-trade,  all  of  which  were  adjusted 
to  the  apparent  satisfaction  of  the  Indians,  who,  on 
their  part,  made  reiterated  professions  of  friendship. 
Pontiac  promised  to  recall  the  war-belts  which  had 
been  sent  to  the  north  and  west,  though,  as  he 
alleged,  many  of  them  had  proceeded  from  the  Sene- 
cas,  and  not  from  him,  adding  that,  when  all  were 
gathered  together,  they  would  be  more  than  a  man 
could  carry.  The  Iroquois  sachems  then  addressed 
the  western  nations,  exhorting  them  to  stand  true  to 
their  engagements,  and  hold  fast  the  chain  of  friend- 
ship ;  and  the  councils  closed  on  the  thirty-first,  with 
a  bountiful  distribution  of  presents  to  Pontiac  and 
his  followers.^  (>  j'.i  u)  i   u  n. 

Thus  ended  this  memorable  •  meeting,  in  which 
Pontiac  sealed  his  submission  to  the  English,  and 
renounced  forever  the  bold  design  by  which  he  had 
trusted  to  avert  or  retard  the  ruin  of  his  race.  His 
hope  of  seeing  the  empire  of  France  restored  in 
America  was  scattered  to  the  winds,  and  with  it  van- 
ished every  rational  scheme  of  resistance  to  English 
encroachment.     Nothing  now  remained  but  to  stand 

1  MS.  Minutes  of  Proceedings  at  a  A  copy  of  tliia  document  is  pre- 

Congress  with  Pontiac  and  Chiefs  of  served  in  the  office  of  the  secretary 

the    Ottawas,   Pottawattamies,  Hu-  of  state  at  Albany,  among  the  papers 

rons,  and  Chippewais ;  begun  at  Os-  procured  in  London  by  Mr.  Brod- 

wego,  Tuesday,  July  23, 1766.  head. 


Chaf.  XXXI] 


FRESH  DISTURBANCES. 


567 


/ 


an  idle  spectator,  while,  in  the  north  and  in  the 
south,  the  tide  of  British  power  rolled  westward  in 
resistless  might;  while  the  fragments  of  the  rival 
empire,  which  he  would  fain  have  set  up  as  a  barrier 
against  the  flood,  lay  scattered  a  miserable  wreck; 
and  while  the  remnant  of  his  people  melted  away  or 
fled  for  refuge  to  remoter  deserts.  For  them  the 
prospects  of  the  future  were  as  clear  as  they  were 
calamitous.  Destruction  or  civilization  —  between 
these  lay  their  choice,  and  few  who  knew  them  could 
doubt  which  alternative  they  would  embrace.  !; 

Pontiac,  his  canoe  laden  vdth  the  gifts  of  his  en- 
emy, steered  homeward  for  the  Maumee;  and  in  this 
vicinity  he  spent  the  following  winter,  pitching  his 
lodge  in  the  forest  vrith  his  wives  and  children,  and 
hunting  like  an  ordinary  warrior.  With  the  suc- 
ceeding spring,  1767,  fresh  murmurings  of  discontent 
arose  among  the  Indian  tribes,  from  the  lakes  to  the 
Potomac,  the  first  precursors  of  the  disorders  which, 
a  few  years  later,  ripened  into  a  brief  but  bloody 
war  along  the  borders  of  Virginia.  These  threaten- 
ing symptoms  might  easily  be  traced  to  their  source. 
The  incorrigible  frontiersmen  had  again  let  loose 
their  murdering  propensities;  and  a  multitude  of 
squatters  had  built  their  cabins  on  Indian  lands  be- 
yond the  limits  of  Pennsylvania,  adding  insult  to 
aggression,  and  sparing  neither  oaths,  curses,  nor  any 
form  of  abuse  and  maltreatment  against  the  rightful 
owners  of  the  soU.^  The  new  regulations  of  the  fur- 
trade  could  not  prevent  disorders  among  the  reckless 
men  engaged  in  it.    This  was  particularly  the  case 


K 


1  "It  seems,"  writes  Sir  William  bring  on  a  new  war,  though  their 
Johnson  to  the  lords  of  trade,  "  aa  own  ruin  may  be  the  consequence." 
if  tlie  people  were   determined  to 


;   '11 


;  '.if 

I 


i  i 


I 


*;■■■■'■-- 


,» ' 


568 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XXXL 


in  the  region  of  the  Illinois,  where  the  evil  was 
aggravated  by  the  renewed  intrigues  of  the  French, 
and  especially  of  those  who  had  fled  from  the  English 
side  of  the  Mississippi,  and  made  their  abode  around 
the  new  settlement  of  St.  Louis.^  It  is  difficult  to 
say  how  far  Pontiac  was  involved  in  this  agitation. 
It  is  certain  that  some  of  the  English  traders  re- 
garded him  with  jealousy  and  fear,  as  prime  mover 
of  the  whole,  and  eagerly  watched  an  opportunity 
,to  destroy  him. 

N,  The  discontent  among  the  tribes  did  not  diminish 
with  the  lapse  of  time;  yet  for  many  months  we 
can  discern  no  trace  of  Pontiac.     Records  and  tra- 

jl  ditions  are 'silent  concerning  him.  It  is  not  until 
April,  1769,  that  he  appears  once  more  distinctly  on 
the  scene.*"  At  about  that  time  he  came  to  the  Illi- 
nois, with  what  design  does  not  appear,  though  his 
movements  excited  much  uneasiness  among  the  few 
English  in  that  quarter.  Soon  after  his  arrival,  he 
repaired  to  St.  Louis,  to  visit  his  former  acquaint- 
ance, St.  Ange,  who  was  then  in  command  at  that 
post,  having  offered  his  services  to  the  Spaniards 
after  the  cession  of  Louisiana.  After  leaving  the 
fort,  Pontiac  proceeded  to  the  house  of  which  young 
Pierre  Chouteau  was  an  inmate;  and  to  the  last 
days  of  his  protracted  life,  the  latter  could  vividly 
recall  the  circumstances  of  the  interview.  The  sav- 
age chief  was    arrayed    in    the  full    uniform  of  a 


J  Doc.  Hist  N.  Y.  II.  861-893,  etc. 
MS.  Johnson  Papers.  MS.  Gage 
Papere. 

^  Carver  says  that  Pontiac  was 
killed  in  1767.  This  may  possibly 
be  a  mere  printer's  error.  In  the 
Maryland  Gazette,  and  also  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Gazette,  were  pub- 
lished during  the  month  of  August, 


1769,  several  letters  from  the  Indian 
country,  in  which  Pontiac  is  men- 
tioned as  having  been  killed  during 
the  preceding  April.  M.  Chouteau 
states  that,  to  the  best  of  his  recol- 
lection, the  chief  was  killed  in  1768 ; 
but  oral  testimony  is  of  little  weight 
in  regard  to  dates.  The  evidence 
of  tlie  Gazettes  appears  conclusive. 


f  ,■ 


[Chap.  TCTCXj, 


Chaf.  XXXL] 


CAHOEIA. 


569 


French  officer,  which  had  been  presented  to  him  as 
a  special  mark  of  respect  and  favor  by  the  Marquis 
of  Montcalm,  towards  the  close  of  the  French  war, 
and  which  Pontiac  never  had  the  bad  taste  to  wear, 
except  on  occasions  when  he  wished  to  appear  with 
imusual  dignity.  St.  Ange,  Chouteau,  and  the  other 
principal  inhabitants  of  the  infant  settlement,  whom 
he  visited  in  turn,  all  received  him  with  cordial  wel- 
come, and  did  their  best  to  entertain  him  and  his 
attendant  chiefs.  He  remained  at  St.  Louis  for  two 
or  three  days,  when,  hearing  that  a  large  number 
of  Indians  were  assembled  at  Cahokia,  on  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  river,  and  that  some  drinking  bout 
or  other  social  gathering  was  in  progress,  he  told 
St.  Ange  that  he  would  cross  over  to  see  what  was 
going  forward.  St.  Ange  tried  to  dissuade  him,  and 
urged  the  risk  to  which  he  would  expose  himself; 
but  Pontiac  persisted,  boasting  that  he  was  a  match 
for  the  English,  and  had  no  fear  for  his  life.  He 
entered  a  canoe  with  some  of  his  followers,  and  Chou- 
teau never  saw  him  again. 

He  who,  at  the  present  day,  crosses  from  the  city 
of  St.  Louis  to  the  opposite  shore  of  the  Mississippi, 
and  passes  southward  through  a  forest  festooned  with 
grape-vines,  and  fragrant  with  the  scent  of  flowers, 
will  soon  emerge  upon  the  ancient  hamlet  of  Cahokia. 
To  one  fresh  from  the  busy  suburbs  of  the  American 
city,  the  small  French  houses,  scattered  in  picturesque 
disorder,  the  light-hearted,  thriftless  look  of  their  in- 
mates, and  the  woods  which  form  the  background 
of  the  picture,  seem  like  the  remnants  of  an  earlier 
and  simpler  world.  Strange  changes  have  passed 
around  that  spot.  Forests  have  fallen,  cities  have 
sprung  up,  and  the  lonely  wilderness  is  thronged  with 


i 

■if 


t:c 


V  V 


1 1 


f> 


670 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XXXI. 


h.J" 


: 


•1    . 


IVi! 


r.' 


t 


1 


human  life.  Nature  herself  has  taken  part  in  the 
general  transformation,  and  the  Mississippi  has  made 
a  fearful  inroad,  robbing  from  the  luckless  Creoles  a 
mile  of  rich  meadow  and  woodland.  Yet,  in  the  midst 
of  all,  this  relic  of  the  lost  empire  of  France  has 

,  preserved  its  essential  features  through  the  lapse  of 
a  century,  and  offers  at  this  day  an  aspect  not  widely 
different  from  that  which  met  the  eye  of  Pontiac, 
when  he  and  his  chiefs  landed  on  its  shore. 

The   place  was  full  of  Illinois   Indians;    such  a 

,  scene  as  in  our  own  time  may  often  be  met  Avith 
in  some  squalid  settlement  of  the  border,  where  the 
vagabond  guests,  bedizened  with  dirty  finery,  tie  their 
small  horses  in  rows  along  the  fcn'^e.^,  and  stroll 
idly  among  the  houses,  or  lounge  abonJt  the  dram- 
shops. A  chief  so  renowned  as  Pontiac  could  not 
remain  long  among  the  friendly  Creoles  of  Cahokia 
without  being  summoned  to  a  feast;  and  at  such 
primitive  entertainment  the  whiskey  bottle  would  not 
fail  to  play  its  part.  This  ^*as  in  truth  the  case. 
Pontiac  drank  deeply,  and,  when  the  carousal  was 
over,  strode  down  the  village  street  to  the  adjacent 
woods,  where  he  was  heard  to  sing  the  medicine 
songs,  in  whose  magic  power  he  trusted  as  the  war- 
rant of  success  in  all  his  undertakings,      j :r 

An  English  trader,  named  Williamson,  was  then 
in  the  village.  He  had  looked  on  the  movements  of 
Pontiac  with  a  jealousy  probably  not  diminished  by 
the  visit  of  the  chief  to  the  French  at  St.  Louis; 
and  he  now  resolved  not  to  lose  so  favorable  an  op- 
portunity to  despatch  him.  With  this  view,  he  gained 
the  ear  of  a  strolling  Indian  belonging  to  the  Kas- 
kaskia  tribe  of  the  Illinois,  bribed  him  with  a  barrel 
of  liquor,  and  promised  him  a  farther  reward  if  he 


CuAP.  XXXI.] 


DEATH  OF  rONTIAC. 


/    J 


oa 


/ 


would  kill  the  chief.  The  bargain  was  quickly  made. 
When  Pontiac  entered  the  forest,  the  assassin  stole 
close  upon  his  track,  and,  watching  his  moment,  glided 
behind  him,  and  buried  a  tomahawk  in  his  brain. 

The  dead  body  was  soon  discovered,  and  startled 
cries  and  wild  bowlings  announced  the  event.  The 
word  was  caught  up  from  mouth  to  mouth,  and  the 
place  resounded  with  infernal  yells.  The  warriors 
snatched  their  weapons.  The  Illinois  took  part  with 
their  guilty  countryman,  and  the  few  followers  of 
Pontiac,  driven  from  the  village,  fled  to  spread  the 
tidings  and  call  the  nations  to  revenge.  Meanwhile 
the  murdered  chief  lay  on  the  spot  where  he  had 
fallen,  until  St.  Ange,  mindful  of  former  friendship, 
sent  to  claim  the  body,  and  buried  it  with  warlike 
honors,  near  his  fort  of  St.  Louis.^ 

Thus  basely  perished  this  champion  of  a  ruined 
race.     But  could  his  shade  have  revisited  the  scene 


1  Carver,  Travels,  166,  pays  that 
Pontiac  was  stabbed  at  a  public 
council  in  the  Illinois,  by  "  a  faithful 
Indian  who  was  either  commissioned 
by  one  of  the  English  governors,  or  in- 
stigated by  the  love  he  bore  the  Eng- 
lish nation."  This  account  is  without 
sufficient  confirmation.  Carver,  who 
did  not  visit  the  Illinois,  must  have 
drawn  his  information  from  hearsay. 
The  open  manner  of  dealing  with  his 
victim,  which  he  ascribes  to  the  as- 
sassin, is  wholly  repugnant  to  Indian 
character  and  principles;  while  the 
gross  charge,  thrown  out  at  random 
against  an  English  governor,  might 
of  itself  cast  discredit  on  the  story. 

I  have  followed  the  account  which 
I  received  from  M.  Pierre  Chou 
teau,  and  from  M.  P.  L.  Cerr6, 
another  old  inhabitant  of  the  Illinois, 
whose  father  was  well  acquainted 
with  Pontiac.  The  same  account 
may  be  found,  concisely  stated,  in 
Nicollet,  p.  81.  M.  Nicollet  states 
that  he  derived  liis  information  both 


from  M.  Chouteau  and  from  the  no 
less  respectable  authority  of  the  ciged 
Pierre  Menard  of  Kaskaskia.  The 
notices  of  Pontiac'a  death  in  the  pro- 
vincial journals  of  the  day,  to  a  cer- 
tain extent,  confirm  this  story.  We 
gather  from  them,  that  he  was  killed 
at  the  Illinois,  by  one  or  more  Kas- 
kaskia Indians,  during  a  drunken 
frolic,  and  in  consequence  of  his  hos- 
tility to  the  English.  One  letter, 
however,  states  on  hearsay  that  he 
was  killed  near  Fort  Chaitres,  and 
Gouin's  traditional  account  seems  to 
support  the  statement.  On  this  point, 
I  have  followed  the  distinct  and  cir- 
cumstantial narrative  of  Chouteau, 
supported  as  it  is  by  Cerre.  M. 
Chouteau's  recollections,  as  already 
mentioned,  are  in  general  remarka- 
ble for  then:  singularly  close  accord- 
ance with  contemporary  documents. 
I  am  indebted  to  the  kindness  of 
my  friend  Mr.  Lyman  C.  Draper  for 
valuable  assistance  in  my  inquiries 
in  relation  to  Pontiac's  death. 


I  "■ 


'M 


.■I 


■1 


1 

• 

• 

i 

672 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


[Chap.  XXXI. 


of  murder,  his  savage  spirit  would  have  exulted  in 
the  vengeance  which  overwhelmed  the  abetters  of  the 
crime.  Whole  tribes  were  rooted  out  to  expiate  it. 
Chiefs  and  sachems,  whose  veins  had  thrilled  with 
his  eloquence,  young  warriors,  whose  aspiring  hearts 
had  caught  the  inspiration  of  his  greatness,  mus- 
tered to  revenge  his  fate,  and  from  the  north  and 
the  east,  their  united  bands  descended  on  the  villages 
of  the  Illinois.  Tradition  has  but  faintly  preserved 
the  memory  of  the  event ;  and  its  only  annalists,  men 
who  held  the  intestine  feuds  of  the  savage  tribes  in 
no  more  account  than  the  quarrels  of  panthers  or 
wildcats,  have  left  but  a  meagre  record.  Yet  enough 
remains  to  tell  us  that  over  the  grave  of  Pontiac 
more  blood  was  poured  out  in  atonement  than  flowed 
from  the  hecatombs  of  slaughtered  heroes  on  the 
corpse  of  Patroclus ;  and  the  remnant  of  the  Illinois 
who  survived  the  carnage  remained  forever  after  sunk 
in  utter  insignificance.* 


1  "  This  murder,  which  roused  the 
vengeance  of  all  the  Indian  tribes 
friendly  to  Pontiac,  brought  about  the 
successive  wars,  and  almost  total  ex- 
termination, of  tiie  Illinois  nation."  — 
Nicollet,  82. 

"The  Kaskaskias,  Peorias,  Caho- 
kias,  and  Illonese  are  nearly  all  de- 
stroyed by  the  Sacs  and  Foxes,  for 
killing  in  cool  blood,  and  in  time  of 
peace,  the  Sac's  chief,  Pontiac."  — 
Mass.  Hist.  Coll.  Second  Series,  II.  8. 

The  above  extract  exhibits  the 
usual  confusion  of  Indian  names,  the 
Kaskaikias,  Peorias,  and  Cahokias 
being  component  tribes  of  the  Illo- 
nese or  Illinois  nation.  Pontiac  is 
called  a  chief  of  the  Sacs.  This, 
with  similar  mistakes,  may  easily  have 
arisen  from  the  fact  that  he  was  ac- 
customed to  assume  authority  over 
the  warriors  of  any  tribe  with  whom 
he  chanced  to  be  in  contact. 


Morse  says,  in  his  Report,  1823, 
"In  the  war  kindled  a^inst  these 
tribes,  [Peorias,  Kaskaskias,  and  Ca- 
hokias,] by  the  Sauks  and  Foxes,  in 
revenge  for  the  death  of  their  chief, 
Pontiac,  these  3  tribes  were  nearly 
exterminated.  Few  of  them  now  re- 
main. About  one  hundred  of  the 
Peorias  are  settled  on  Current  River, 
W.  of  the  Mississippi ;  of  the  Kas- 
kaskias <%  only  remain  in  Illinois." 
—  Morse,  363. 

General  Gage,  in  his  letter  to  Sir 
William  Johnson,  dated  July  10, 
176-,  says,  "  The  death  of  Pontine, 
committed  by  an  Indian  of  the  Illi- 
nois, believed  to  have  been  excited 
by  the  English  to  that  action,  had 
u.^  **Ti  many  of  the  Ottawas  and  other 
northern  nations  towards  their  coun- 
try to  revenge  his  death." 

"From  Miami,  Pontiac  went  to 
Fort  Chartres  on  the  Illinois.    In  a 


CuAP.  XXXI.] 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


673 


Neither  mound  nor  tablet  marked  the  burial-place 
of  Pontiac.  For  a  mausoleum,  a  city  has  risen  above 
the  forest  hero;  and  the  race  whom  he  hated  with 
such  burning  rancor  trample  with  imceasing  footsteps 
over  his  foij^otten  grave. 


few  years,  the  English,  who  had  pos- 
session of  the  fort,  procured  an  Indian 
of  the  Peoria  [Kaskaskia]  nation  to 
kill  him.  The  news  spread  like 
lightning  through  the  country.  Tho 
Indians  assembled  in  great  numbers, 
attacked  and  destroyed  all  the  Peo- 
rias,  except  about  thirty  families, 
which  were  received  into  the  fort. 
These  soon  began  to  increase.  They 
removed  to  the  Wabash,  and  were 
about  to  settle,  when  the  Indians  col- 
lected in  the  winter,  surrounded  their 
village,  and  killed  the  whole,  except- 
ing a  few  children,  who  were  saved 
OS  prisoners.  Old  Mr.  Gouin  was 
there  at  the  time.    He  was  a  trader, 


and,  when  the  attack  commenced,  was 
ordered  by  tho  Indians  to  shut  his 
house  and  not  suffer  a  Peoria  to  en- 
ter." —  Oouin^a  Account,  MS. 

Pontiac  left  several  children,  whose 
names  may  occasionally  be  found  in 
the  minutes  of  treaties  and  confer- 
ences held  a  few  years  after  his 
death.  In  a  letter  addressed  to  the 
writer,  Mr.  H.  R.  Schoolcraft  says, 
"  I  knew  ^(&a,  a  descendant  of  Pon- 
tiac. He  was  the  chief  of  an  Ot- 
tawa village  on  the  Maumeo.  A  few 
years  ago,  he  agreed  to  remove,  with 
his  people,  to  ue  west  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, where  he  is  probably  yet 
living." 


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^^ii  ,'^.i:^ :■..<■'.  :-i  .:■':.-' 


APPENDIX   A. 


t    ■■j.Y    z;^; 


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i  '!  >'■' 

[y:r  ■, 

'>-:la       - 

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*'vi 

(I 

cn^A\n 

THE  IROQUOIS.  — EXTENT  OF  THEIR  CONQUESTS.  — POLICY 
PURSUED  TOWARDS  THEM  BY  THE  FRENCH  AND  THE 
ENGLISH.— MEASURES   OF   SIR  WILLLAM  JOHNSON. 


;':hfv:l    -to  i-^:  1.  Territory  of  the  Iroiiuois.  (p.  6.) 


Extract  from  a  Letter 
November  13, 1763, 


•Sir  W.  Johnson  to  the  Board  of  Trade, 


My  Lords : 

In  obedience  to  your  Lordships'  commands  of  the  5th  of  August  last,  I 
am  now  to  lay  before  you  the  claims  of  the  Nations  mentioned  in  the  State 
of  the  Confederacies.  The  Five  Nations  having  in  the  last  century  sub- 
dued the  Shawanese,  Delawares,  Twighties,  and  Western  Indians,  so  far 
as  Lakes  Michigan  and  Superior,  received  them  into  an  alliance,  allowed 
tliem  the  pcrasession  of  the  lands  they  occupied,  and  have  ever  since  been  in 
peace  with  the  greatest  part  of  them ;  and  such  was  the  prowess  of  the 
Five  Nations'  Confederacy,  that  had  they  been  properly  supported  by  us, 
they  would  have  long  since  put  a  period  to  the  Colony  of  Canada,  which 
alone  they  were  near  effecting  in  the  year  1688.  Since  tliat  time,  they 
have  admitted  the  Tuscaroras  from  the  Southward,  beyond  Oneida,  and  tliey 
have  ever  siiiCe  formed  a  part  of  that  Confederacy. 

As  original  proprietors,  this  Confederacy  claim  the  country  of  their  res- 
idence, south  of  Lake  Ontario  to  the  great  Ridge  of  the  Blue  Mountains, 
with  all  the  Western  Part  of  the  Province  of  New  York  towards  Hudson 
River,  west  of  the  Catskill,  thence  to  Lake  Champlain,  and  from  Regioghne, 
a  Rock  at  the  East  side  of  said  Lake,  to  Oswegatche  or  La  Gallettc,  on  the 
River  St  Lawrence,  (having  long  since  ceded  their  claim  north  of  said  line 
in  favor  of  the  Canada  Indians,  as  Hunting-ground,)  thence  up  the  River  St. 
Lawrence,  and  along  the  South  side  of  Lake  Ontario  to  Niagara. 

In  right  of  conquest,  they  claim  all  the  country  (comprehending  the 
Ohio)  along  the  great  Ridge  of  Blue  Mountains  at  the  back  of  Virginia, 
titence  to  the  head  of  Kentucky  River,  and  down  tlie  same  to  tlie  Ohio 


1 1^1''" 


'  r 


576 


APPENDIX  A. 


».■■ ' 

It    '  : 

1..' 

In 

K'  ..   • 

^1 

1 

l'- ' 

«i  « 

■«';■■■ 

1 

i:; 

'Hi 

1 

above  the  Rifts,  thence  Northerly  to  the  South  end  of  Lake  Michigan,  then 
along  the  Eastern  shore  of  said  lake  to  Michillimackinac,  thence  Easterly 
across  the  North  end  of  Lake  Huron  to  the  great  Ottawa  River,  (including 
the  Chippewa  or  Mississagey  Country,)  and  down  the  said  River  to  the 
Island  of  Montreal.  However,  these  more  distant  claims  being  possessed 
by  many  powerful  nations,  the  Inhabitants  have  long  begun  to  render  them- 
selves independent,  by  the  assistance  of  the  French,  and  the  great  decrease 
of  the  Six  Nations ;  but  their  claim  to  the  Ohio,  and  thence  to  the  Lakes, 
is  not  in  the  least  disputed  by  the  Shawanese,  Delawares,  &c.,  who  never 
transacted  any  sales  of  land  or  other  matters  without  their  consent,  and  who 
sent  Deputies  to  the  grand  Council  at  Onondaga  on  all  important  occasions. 


French  and  English  Polict  towards  the  iRoquois. 
OF  Sir  William  Johnson,  (pp.  65-83.) 


-Measures 


Extract  from   a  Letter- 
May  24, 1765. 


■Sir   W.  Johnson  to  the  Board  of  Trade, 


The  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations,  after  the  arrival  of  the  English,  having 
conceived  a  desire  for  many  articles  they  introduced  among  them,  and 
thereby  finding  them  of  use  to  their  necessities,  or  rather  superfluities,  cul- 
tivated an  acquaintance  with  them,  and  lived  in  tolerable  friendship  with 
their  Province  for  some  time,  to  which  they  were  rather  inclined,  for  they 
were  strangers  to  bribery,  and  at  enmity  with  the  French,  who  had  espoused 
the  cause  of  their  enemies,  supplied  them  with  arms,  and  openly  acted 
against  them.  This  enmity  increased  in  proportion  as  the  desire  of  the 
French  for  subduing  those  people,  who  were  a  bar  to  their  first  projected 
schemes.  However,  we  find  the  Indians,  as  far  back  as  the  very  confused 
manuscript  records  in  my  possession,  repeatedly  upbraiding  this  province 
for  their  negligence,  then*  avarice,  and  their  want  of  assisting  them  at  a 
time  when  it  was  certainly  in  their  power  to  destroy  the  infant  colony  of 
Canada,  although  supported  by  many  nations ;  and  this  is  likewise  confessed 
by  the  writings  of  the  managers  of  these  times.  The  French,  atler  re- 
peated losses,  discovering  that  the  Six  Nations  were  not  to  be  subdued,  but 
that  they  could  without  much  difficulty  efiect  their  purposes  (which  I  have 
good  authority  to  show  were  .  .  .  standing)  by  favors  and  kindness,  on  a 
sudden,  changed  their  conduct  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne,  having  first 
brought  over  many  of  their  people  to  settle  in  Canada ;  and  ever  since,  by 
the  most  endearing  kindnesses,  and  by  a  vast  profusion  of  favors,  have 
secured  tliem  to  their  interest ;  and,  whilst  they  aggravated  our  frauds  and 
designs,  tliey  covered  those  committed  by  themselves  imder  a  load  of  gifts, 
which  obliterated  the  malpractices  of  .  .  .  among  them,  and  enabled 
them  to  establish  themselves  wherever  they  pleased,  witliout  fomenting  the 
Indians'  jealousy.    The  able  agents  they  made  use  of,  and  their  unanimoua 


APPENDIX  A. 


677 


ake  Michigan,  then 
ic,  thence  Easterly 
a  River,  (including 
Baid  River  to  the 
ns  being  possessed 
run  to  render  them- 
i  the  great  decrease 
hence  to  the  Lakes, 
res,  &c.,  who  never 
sir  consent,  and  who 
mportant  occasions. 

^cois. — Measures 
!3.) 

5  Board  of  Trade, 

the  English,  having 
d  among  them,  and 
ler  superfluities,  cul- 
rable  friendship  with 
er  inclined,  for  they 
;h,  who  had  espoused 
s,  and  openly  acted 
as  the  desire  of  the 
their  first  projected 
as  the  very  confused 
raiding  this  province 
assisting  them  at  a 
the  infant  colony  of 
is  likewise  confessed 
'he  French,  atler  re- 
ot  to  be  subdued,  but 
rposes  (which  I  have 
irs  and  kindness,  on  a 
in  Anne,  having  first 
;  and  ever  since,  by 
iision  of  favors,  have 
avated  our  frauds  and 
under  a  load  of  gifts, 
I  them,  and  enabled 
ritliout  fomenting  the 
,  and  their  unanimous 


indefatigable  zeal  for  securing  the  Indian  interest,  were  so  much  superior  to 
any  thing  we  had  ever  attempted,  and  to  the  futile  transactions  :"  the  .  .  . 
and  trading  Commissioners  of  Albany,  that  the  latter  became  universally 
despised  by  the  Indians,  who  daily  withdrew  from  our  interest,  and  con- 
ceived the  most  disadvantageous  sentiments  of  our  integrity  and  abilities. 
In  this  state  of  Indian  affairs  I  was  called  to  the  management  of  these 
people,  as  my  situation  and  opinion  that  it  might  become  one  day  of  service 
to  the  public,  had  induced  me  to  cultivate  a  particular  intimacy  with  these 
people,  to  accommodate  myself  to  their  manners,  and  even  to  their  dress  on 
many  occasions.  How  I  discharged  this  trust  will  best  appear  from  the 
transactions  of  the  war  commenced  in  1744,  in  which  I  was  busily  con- 
cerned. The  steps  I  had  then  taken  alarmed  the  jealousy  of  the  French ; 
rewards  were  offered  for  me,  and  I  narrowly  escaped  assassination  on  more 
than  one  occasion.  The  French  increased  their  munificence  to  the  Indians, 
M'hose  example  not  being  at  all  followed  at  New  York,  I  resigned  the  man- 
agement of  affairs  on  the  ensuing  peace,  ae  I  did  not  choose  to  continue  in 
the  name  of  an  office  which  I  was  not  empowered  to  discharge  as  its  nature 
required.  The  Albany  Commissioners  (the  men  concerned  in  the  clandes- 
tine trade  to  Canada,  and  frequently  upbraided  for  it  by  the  Indians)  did 
then  reassume  their  seats  at  that  Board,  and  by  their  conduct  so  exasper- 
ated the  Indians  that  several  chiefs  went  to  New  York,  1753,  when,  after  a 
severe  speech  to  the  Governor,  Council,  and  Assembly,  they  broke  the 
covenant  chain  of  friendship,  and  withdrew  in  a  rage.  The  consequences 
of  which  were  then  so  much  dreaded,  that  I  was,  by  Governor,  Council,  and 
House  of  Assembly,  the  two  latter  then  my  enemies,  earnestly  entreated  to 
effect  a  reconciliation  with  the  Indians,  as  the  only  person  equal  to  that 
task,  as  will  appear  by  the  Minutes  of  Council  and  resolves  of  the  House. 
A  commission  being  made  out  for  me,  I  proceeded  to  Onondaga,. and 
brought  about  the  much  wished  for  reconciliation,  but  declined  having  any 
further  to  say  of  Indian  affairs,  although  the  Indians  afterwards  refused  to 
meet  the  Governor  and  Commissioners  till  I  was  sent  for.  At  the  arrival  of 
General  Braddock,  I  received  his  Commission  with  reluctance,  at  the  same 
time  assuring  him  that  affairs  had  been  so  ill  conducted,  and  the  Indians  so 
estranged  from  our  interest,  that  I  could  not  take  upon  me  to  hope  for  suc- 
cess. However,  indefatigable  labor,  and  (I  hope  I  may  say  without  vanity) 
personal  interest,  enabled  me  to  exceed  my  own  expectations ;  and  my  con- 
duct since,  if  fully  and  truly  known,  would,  I  believe,  testify  that  I  have  not 
been  an  unprofitable  servant.  'Twas  then  that  the  Indians  began  to  give 
public  sign  of  their  avaricious  dispositions.  The  French  had  long  taught 
them  it ;  and  the  desire  of  some  persons  to  cany  a  greater  number  of  In- 
dians into  the  field  in  1755  than  those  who  accompanied  me,  induced  them 
to  employ  any  agent  at  a  high  salary,  who  had  the  least  interest  with  the 
Indians  ;  and  to  grant  the  latter  Captains*  and  Lieutenants'  Commissions,  (of 
which  I  have  a  number  now  by  me,)  with  sterling  pay,  to  induce  them  to 
desert  me,  but  to  little  purpose,  for  tho'  many  of  them  received  the  Commis- 
accompanied  with  large  sums  of  money,  they  did  not  comply  with 

73  WW 


li' 


ill 


t 


■  X  1 


sionit. 


f* 


-n 


r^ 


.-  '■' 


*    ' 
I. 

F 

I 

\ 

\ 


\   V  • 


\       ! 


578 


APPENDIX  A. 


the  end  proposed,  but  served  with  me ;  and  this  had  not  only  served  them 
with  severe  complaints  against  the  English,  as  they  were  not  afterwards  all 
paid  what  had  been  promised,  but  has  established  a  spirit  of  pride  and  av- 
arice, which  I  have  found  it  ever  since  impossible  to  subdue ;  whilst  our 
extensive  connections  since  the  reduction  of  Canada,  with  so  many  power- 
ful nations  so  long  accustomed  to  partake  largely  of  French  bounty,  has  of 
course  increased  the  expense,  and  rendered  it  in  no  small  degree  necessary 
for  the  preservation  of  oar  frontiers,  outposts,  and  trade.    .    ■    . 


Extract  from  a  Letter - 
December  23, 1763. 


-Cadwallader  Golden  to  the  Earl  of  Halifax, 


Before  I  proceed  further,  I  think  it  proper  to  inform  your  Lordship  of 
•  the  different  state  of  the  Policy  of  the  Five  Nations  in  different  periods  of 
time.  Before  the  peace  of  Utrecht,  tlie  Five  Nations  were  at  war  with  the 
French  in  Canada,  and  with  all  the  Jadian  Nations  who  were  in  friendship 
with  the  T<'rench.  This  put  the  Five  Nations  under  a  necessity  of  depend- 
ing on  this  province  for  a  supply  of  every  thing  by  which  they  could  carry 
i  i  on  the  war  or  defend  themselves,  and  their  behavior  towards  us  was 
accordingly.  « 

After  the  peace  of  Utrecht,  the  French  changed  their  measures.  They 
took  every  method  in  their  power  to  gain  the  ftiendship  of  the  Five  Nations, 
and  succeeded  so  far  with  the  Senecas,  who  are  by  far  the  most  numerous, 
and  at  the  greatest  distance  from  us,  that  they  were  entirely  brought  over 
^  to  the  French  interest  The  French  obtained  the  consent  of  the  Senecas 
to  the  building  of  the  Fort  at  Niagara,  situated  in  their  country. 

When  the  French  had  too  evidently,  before  the  last  war,  got  the 
asccoidant  among  all  the  Indian  Nations,  we  endeavored  to  make  the  Indians 
jealous  of  the  French  power,  that  they  were  thereby  in  danger  of  becoming 
slaves  to  the  French,  unless  they  were  protected  by  the  English.    .    .    . 


T-     '(■.■:    .. 


f  :■    t   - 


.(    !-:''■ 


r'i  ^■{•■'-Xf'"-r:'R<jrfy;^'';:r, 


fi  'iM^W^ 


e  Earl  of  Halifax, 


APPENDIX    B. 


iJ;J  ■^■- 


•m 


CAUSES   OF   THE   INDIAN   WAR. 


Extract  from  a  Letter — Sir  W.  Johnson  to  the  Board  of  Trade, 
November  13,  1763.  (Chap.  VII.) 

.  .  .  The  French,  in  order  to  reconcile  them  [the  Indians]  to  their 
encroachments,  loaded  them  with  favors,  and  employed  the  most  intelligent 
Agents  of  good  influence,  as  well  as  artful  Jesuits  among  the  several 
Western  and  other  Nations,  who,  by  degrees,  prevailed  on  ihem  to  admit  of 
Forts,  under  the  Notion  of  Trading  houses,  in  their  Country ;  and  knowing 
that  these  posts  could  never  be  maintained  contrary  to  the  inclinations  of  the 
Indians,  they  supplied  them  thereat  with  ammunition  and  other  necessaries 
in  abundance,  as  also  called  them  to  frequent  congresses,  and  dismissed  them 
with  handsome  presents,  by  which  they  enjoyed  an  extensive  commerce, 
obtained  the  assistance  of  these  Indians,  and  possessed  their  frontiers  in 
safety ;  and  as  wiliout  these  measures  the  Indians  would  never  have  suf- 
fered them  in  their  Country,  so  they  expect  that  whatever  European  power 
possesses  the  same,  they  shall  in  some  measure  reap  the  like  advantages. 
Now,  as  these  advantages  ceased  on  the  Posts  being  possessed  by  the 
English,  and  especially  as  it  was  not  thought  prudent  to  indulge  them 
with  ammunition,  they  immediately  concluded  that  we  had  designs  against 
their  liberties,  which  opinion  had  been  first  instilled  into  them  by  the  French, 
and  since  promoted  by  Traders  of  that  nation  and  others  who  retired  among 
them  on  the  surrender  of  Canada,  and  are  still  there,  as  wsU  as  by  Belts  of 
Wampum  and  other  exhortations,  which  I  am  confidently  assured  have  been 
seut  among  them  from  the  Illinois,  Louisiana  and  even  Canada  for  that 
purpose.  The  Shawanese  and  Delawares  about  the  Ohio,  who  were  never 
warmly  attached  to  us  since  our  neglects  to  defend  them  against  the 
encroachments  of  the  French,  and  refusing  to  erect  a  post  at  the  Ohio,  or 
assist  them  and  thb  Six  Nations  with  men  or  ammunition,  when  they 
requested  both  of  us,  as  well  as  irritated  at  the  loss  of  several  of  their 
people  killed  upon  the  communication  to  Fort  Pitt,  in  the  years  1759  and 


'•If' 


1; 

(^^ 

i                                1 
1    :t                        { 

■! 

i 

.■H 


'^:-? 

.::i! 


1 


I''  ' 


Jl 


11 


580 


APPENDIX  B. 


i  1 


1761,  were  easily  induced  to  join  with  the  Western  Nations,  and  the  Sen- 
ecas,  dissatisfied  at  many  of  our  posts,  jealous  of  our  designs,  and  displeased 
at  our  neglect  and  contempt  of  them,  coon  followed  their  example. 

These  arc  the  causes  the  Indians  themselves  assign,  and  which  certainly 
occasioned  the  rupture  between  us,  the  consequence  of  which,  in  my  opinion, 
will  be  that  the  Indians  (who  do  not  regard  the  distance)  will  be  supplied 
with  necessaries  hy  the  Wabache  and  several  Rivers,  which  empty  into  the 
Mississippi,  which  it  ia  by  no  means  in  our  power  to  prevent,  and  in  return 
the  French  will  draw  the  valuable  furs  down  that  river  to  the  advantage  of 
their  Colony  and  the  destruction  of  our  Trade ;  this  will  always  induce  the 
French  to  foment  differences  between  us  and  the  Indians,  and  the  prospects 
many  of  them  entertain,  that  they  may  hereafter  become  possessed  of 
Canada,  will  incline  them  still  more  to  cultivate  a  good  understanding  with 
the  Indians,  which,  if  ever  attempted  by  the  French,  would,  I  am  very 
apprehensive,  be  attended  with  a  general  defection  of  them  from  our  interest, 
unless  we  are  at  great  pains  and  expense  to  regain  their  friendship,  and 
thereby  satisfy  them  that  we  have  no  designs  to  their  prejudice. 

•  •  •  •  • 

The  grand  matter  of  concern  to  all  the  Six  Nations  (Moihawks  excepted) 
is  the  occupying  a  chain  of  small  Posts  on  the  communication  thro'  their 
country  to  Lake  Ontario,  not  to  mention  Fort  Stanwix,  exclusive  of  which 
there  were  erected  in  1759  Fort  Schuyler  on  the  Mohawk  River,  and  the 
Rojral  Blockhouse  at  the  East  end  of  Oneida  Lake,  in  the  Country  of  the 
Oneidas,  Fort  Brewerton  and  a  Post  at  Oswego  Falls  in  the  Onondagas 
Country ;  in  order  to  obtain  permission  for  erecting  these  posts,  they  were 
[•-omised  they  should  be  demolished  at  the  end  of  the  war.  General  Shir- 
ley also  made  them  a  like  promise  for  the  posts  he  erected;  and  as 
about  these  posts  are  their  fishing  and  hunting  places,  where  they  complain, 
that  they  are  often  obstructed  by  the  troops  and  insulted,  they  request  that 
they  may  not  be  kept  up,  the  war  with  the  French  being  now  over. 

in  1760,  Sir  Jefirey  Amherst  sent  a  speech  to  the  Indians  in  writing, 
which  was  to  be  communicated  to  the  Nations  about  Fort  Pitt,  &c.,  by 
General  Monkton,  then  commanding  there,  signifying  his  intentions  to 
satisfy  and  content  all  Indians  for  the  ground  occupied  by  the  posts,  as  also 
for  any  land  about  them,  which  might  be  found  necessary  for  the  use  of  the 
garrisons ;  but  the  same  has  not  been  performed,  neither  are  the  Indians  in 
tlie  several  countries  at  all  pleased  at  our  occupying  them,  which  they  look 
upon  as  the  first  steps  to  enslave  them  and  invade  their  properties. 

And  I  beg  leave  to  represent  to  your  Lordships,  that  one  very  material 
advantage  resulting  from  a  continuance  of  good  treatment  and  some  favors 
to  the  Indians,  will  be  the  security  and  toleration  thereby  given  to  the 
Troops  for  cultivating  lands  about  the  garrisons,  which  the  reduction  of 
tiieir  Rations  renders  absolutely  necessary 

•jrwli    !.-    •:■::-' 


■Js;;  :»  ifHWiprj   t>'  i-mft  '& 


■vl;  lu  ,nn  h^% 


Sl<t:: 


APPENDIX   B. 


^■r 


581 


I- 


Pontxach:  on  the  Savages  of  America.  A  Tragedy.  London: 
Printed  for  the  Author ;  and  Sold  by  J.  Millan,  opposite  the  Admiralty, 
WhitehaU.    MDCCLXVI.    (pp.  146-156.) 

The  author  of  thia  tragedy  was  evidently  a  person  well  acquainted 
with  Indian  affairs  and  Indian  character.  Various  allusions  contained  in  it, 
na  well  as  several  peculiar  forms  of  expression,  indicate  that  Major  Rogers 
had  a  share  in  its  composition.  The  first  act  exhibits  in  detail  the  causes 
which  led  to  the  Indian  war.  The  rest  of  the  play  is  of  a  different  character. 
The  plot  is  sufficiently  extravagant,  and  has  little  or  no  historical  foundation. 
Chekitan,  the  son  of  Ponteach,  is  in  love  with  Monelia,  the  daughter  of 
Hcndrick,  Emperor  of  the  Mohawks.  Monelia  ia  murdered  by  Chekitan's 
brother  Philip,  partly  out  .,\  revenge  and  jealousy,  and  partly  in  furtherance 
of  a  scheme  of  policy.  Cuekitan  kills  Philip,  and  then  dies  by  his  own 
hand,  and  Ponteach,  whose  warriors  meanwhile  have  been  defeated  by  tlie 
English,  overwhelmed  by  this  accumulation  of  public  and  private  calamities, 
retires  to  the  forests  of  the  west  to  escape  the  memory  of  his  griefs.  The 
style  of  tlie  drama  is  superior  to  the  plot,  and  the  writer  displays  at  times  no 
small  insight  into  the  workings  of  human  nature. 

The  account  of  Indian  wrongs  and  sufferings  given  in  the  first  act 
accords  so  nearly  with  that  conveyed  in  contemporary  letters  and  documents, 
that  two  scenes  from  this  part  of  the  play  are  here  given,  witli  a  few  omis- 
sions, which  good  taste  demands. 


,'.U 


ACT  I. 


ScEKE  I.  —  An  Indian  Trading  House. 


Erdtr  M'Dole  and  Mcrfhey,  Two  Indian  Traders,  and  their  ServatUs. 

M'Dole,    So,  Murphey,  you  are  come  to  try  your  Fortune 
Among  the  Savages  in  this  wild  Desart  ? 

Murphey.    Ay,  any  thing  to  get  an  honest  Living,  a i*;?  .T 
Which,  faith,  I  find  it  hard  enough  to  do ;  ;\  '■-•''■ '  '  * 

Times  are  so  dull,  and  Traders  are  so  plenty, 
Tiiat  Gains  are  small,  and  Profits  come  but  slow. 

M^Dole.    Are  you  experienced  in  this  kind  of  Trade  ? 
TCnow  you  the  Principles  by  which  it  prospers. 
And  how  to  make  it  lucrative  and  safe  ?  •>-'•         > 

If  not,  you're  like  a  Ship  without  a  Rudder,        ;  .'      '  .-  .     ■ 
That  drives  at  random,  and  must  surely  sink. 

Murphey.    Vm  unacquainted  with  your  Indian  Commerce 
And  gladly  would  I  learn  the  arts  from  you,        -■  ■  »of«  W  ^;.f' 
Who're  old,  and  practis'd  in  them  many  Years.  '     ;' 

WW* 


.*!■ 


■■.y 


682 


APPENDIX  B. 


■'7 


MWole.    That  is  the  curst  Misfortune  of  our  Tradera ; 
A  thousand  Fools  attempt  to  live  this  Way, 
Who  might  as  well  turn  Ministers  of  State.       \ 
But,  as  you  are  a  Friend,  I  will  inform  you  » 

Of  all  the  secret  Arts  by  which  we  thrive. 
Which  if  all  practis'd,  we  might  all  grow  rich, 
Nor  circumvent  each  other  in  uur  Gains. 
What  have  you  got  to  part  with  to  the  Indians  ? 

Murphey.    I've  Rum  and  Blankets,  Wampum,  Powder,  Bcils, 
And  such  like  Trifles  as  they're  wont  to  prize. 

M*Dole.    'Tis  very  well :  your  Articles  are  good : 
But  now  the  Thing's  to  make  a  Profit  from  them. 
Worth  all  your  Toil  and  Pains  of  coming  hither. 
Our  fundamental  Maxim  then  ia  this. 
That  it's  no  Crime  to  cheat  and  gull  an  Indian. 

Murphey.    How !    Not  a  Sin  to  cheat  an  Indian,  say  you  ? 
Are  they  not  Men  ?  hav'nt  they  a  Right  to  Justice 
As  well  as  we,  though  savage  in  their  Manners  ? 

M^Dok:    Ah !    If  you  boggle  here,  I  say  no  morQ ; 
This  id  the  very  Quintessence  of  Trade,  ' 

And  ev'ry  Hope  of  Gain  depends  upon  it ; 
None  who  neglect  it  ever  did  grow  rich, 
Or  ever  will,  or  can  by  Indian  Commerce. 
By  this  old  Ogden  built  his  stately  House, 
Purchased  Estates,  and  grew  a  little  King. 
He,  like  an  honest  Man,  bought  all  by  weight. 
And  made  the  ign'rant  Savages  believe 
That  his  Right  Foot  exactly  weighed  a  Pound. 
By  this  for  many  years  he  bought  their  Furs, 
And  died  in  Quiet  like  an  honest  Dealer. 

Murphey.    Well,  111  not  stick  at  what  is  necessary ; 
But  his  Devise  is  now  grown  old  and  stale. 
Nor  could  I  manage  such  a  barefac'd  Fraud. 

M^Dole.    A  thousand  Opportunities  present 
To  take  Advantage  of  their  Ignorance ; 
But  the  great  Engine  I  employ  is  Rum, 
More  pow'rful  made  by  certain  strength'ning  Drugs. 
This  I  distribnte  with  a  lib'ral  Hand,  it' 

Urge  them  to  drink  till  they  grow  mad  and  valiant ; 
Wliich  makes  them  think  me  generous  and  just,  -^ 

And  gives  full  Scope  to  practise  all  my  Art 
I  then  begin  my  Trade  with  water'd  Rum ; 
The  cooling  Draught  well  suits  their  scorching  Throats. 
Their  Fur  and  Peltry  come  in  quick  Return : 
My  Scales  nxe  honest,  but  so  well  contriv'd,  \ 

That  one  small  Slip  will  turn  Three  Pounds  to  One :         •    • 


APPENDIX  B. 


583 


'owder,  Beils, 


/■/• 


^} 


If 


Which  they,  poor  silly  Souls !  ignorant  of  Weights 

And  Rules  of  Balancing,  do  noc  perceive.  ;: 

But  here  they  come ;  you'll  see  how  ^  proceed. 

Jack,  is  the  Rum  prepar'd  as  !  coL.iuo.nded  ? 

Jack.    Yes,  Sir,  all's  ready  when  you  please  to  call. 

M'Dole.    Bring  here  the.  Scales  and  Wei^ts  immediately ; 
You  see  the  Trick  is  easy  and  conceal'd.        [Showing  how  to  slip  the  Scde. 

Murphey,    By  Jupiter,  it's  artfully  contriv'd ; 
And  was  I  King,  I  swear  I'd  knight  th'  Inventor.  j  } 

Tom,  mind  the  Part  that  you  will  have  to  act  u\ 

Tom.    Ah,  never  fear ;  Fll  do  as  well  as  Jack. 
But  then,  you  know,  an  honest  Servant's  Pain  deserA'es  Reward.  * 

Murphxy.    O !  I'll  take  care  of  that 

\Emttr  a  JVtimler  of  Indians  with  Packs  of  Fur. 

1st  Indian.    So,  what  you  trade  with  Indians  here  to-day  ? 

MWole.    Yes,  if  my  Goods  will  suit,  and  we  agree. 

2d  Indian.    Tis  Rum  we  want;  we're  tired,  hot,  and  thirsty.  ,v 

3d  Indian.    You,  Mr.  Englishman,  have  you  got  Rom  ? 

M^Dole.    Jack,  bring  a  Bottle,  pour  them  each  a  Gill. 

You  know  which  Cask  contains  the  Rum.    The  Rum  ? 

1st  Indian.    It's  good  strong  Rum ;  I  feel  it  very  soon.  „     .  / ; 

M*Dole.    Give  me  a  Glass.    Here's  Honesty  in  Trade ;   'r^  •♦^^  iwfi-'l  *; ' 
We  English  alwuys  drink  before  we  deal.' 

2d  Indian.    Good  way  enough ;  it  makes  one  sharp  and  cunning.         ^  I 

M^Dole.    Hand  round  another  Gill.    You're  very  welcome.  ,  K 

3d  Indian.    Some  say  you  Englishmen  are  sometimes  Rogues ; 
You  make  poor  Indians  drunk,  and  then  you  cheat 

1st  Indian.    No,  English  good.    The  Frenchmen  give  no  Rum. 

2d  Indian.    I  think  it's  best  to  trade  with  Englishmen. 

M^Dole.    What  is  your  Price  for  Beaver  Skins  per  Pound  ? 

1st  Indian.    How  much  you  ask  per  Quart  for  this  strong  Rum  ? 

M^Dole.    Five  Pounds  of  Beaver  for  One  Quart  of  Rum. 

1st  Indian.    Five  Pounds  ?   Too  much.   Which  is't  you  call  Five  Pound  ? 

M^Dole.    This  little  Weight    I  cannot  give  you  more. 

1st  Indian,    Well,  take  'em ;  weigh  'em.    Don't  you  cheat  us  now. 

M^Dole.    No ;  He  that  cheats  an  Indian  should  be  hanged. 

[Weighing  the  PacJcs. 
There's  Thirty  Pounds  precisely  of  the  Whole ; 

Five  times  Six  is  Thirty.    Six  Quarts  of  Rum.        .      .:  „  .     - -.i.  i.. -;•.-; 
Jack,  measure  it  to  them ;  you  know  the  Cask.  -;..;. 

This  Rum  is  sold.    You  draw  it  off  the  best 

:    "    .  [Exeunt  Indians  to  receive  their  Rum. 

Murphey.    By  Jove,  you've  gained  more  in  a  single  Hour        ^  ,,>.„,.  , 
Than  ever  I  have  done  in  Half  a  Year :  :;  ^ w - 


■M 


Ir 


f  u" 


584 


APPENDIX  B. 


f  -  i 

^      ! 

I  «■ 

r"  »■ 


i 


Corse  on  my  Honesty !    I  might  have  been 
A  little  King,  and  lived  without  Concern, 
Had  I  but  known  the  proper  Arts  to  thrive. 

M^Dok.    Ay,  there's  the  Way,  my  honest  Friend,  to  live. 

[Clappiim  hia  thoulder. 
Tliere's  Nmety  Weight  of  Sterling  Beaver  for  you. 
Worth  all  the  Rum  and  Trinket*^  in  my  Store ; 
And,  would  my  Conscience  let  me  do  the  Thing, 
I  might  enhance  my  Price,  and  lessen  theirs. 
And  raise  my  Profits  to  a  higher  Pitch. 

Murphey.    I  can't  but  thank  you  for  your  kind  Instructions, 
As  from  ^em  I  expect  to  reap  Advantage. 
But  should  the  Dogs  detect  me  in  the  Fraud,  i     <) 

They  are  malicious,  and  would  have  Revenge. 

M^Dole.    Can't  you  avoid  them  ?    Let  their  Vengeance  light 
On  others  Heads,  no  matter  whose,  if  you 
Are  but  Secure,  and  have  the  Gain  in  Hand ; 
For  they're  indiff 'rent  where  they  take  Revenge, 
Whether  on  him  that  cheated,  or  his  Friend, 
Or  on  a  Stranger  whom  they  never  saw, 
Perhaps  an  honest  Peasant,  who  ne'er  dreamt 
Of  Fraud  or  Villainy  in  all  his  Life ; 
Such  let  them  r-.i^'-^er,  if  they  will,  a  Score,  -  i-ji 

The  Guilt  is  theirs,  while  we  secure  the  Gain, 
Nor  shall  we  feel  the  bleeding  Victim's  Pain. 


r. 


[Exeunt. 


;  i"!.''»5f''ft  fe- 


Scene  IL  —  A  Desart 

-I  '■■■■ : 

JEfUer  Orsbourn  and  Hoifi^MA??,  Two  English  Hxinkrs* 

Orshoum.    Long  have  we  toil'd,  and  rang'd  the  woods  in  vain ; 
No  Game,  nor  Track,  nor  Sign  of  any  Kind 
Is  to  be  seen ;  I  swear  I  am  discourag'd 
And  weary'd  out  with  tliis  long  fruitless  Hunt. 
No  Life  on  Earth  besides  is  half  so  hard. 
So  full  of  Disappointments,  as  a  Hunter's : 
Each  Mom  he  wakes  he  views  the  destin'd  Prey, 
And  counts  the  Profits  of  th'  ensuing  Day ; 
Each  Ev'ning  at  his  curs'd  ill  Fortune  pines. 
And  till  next  Day  his  Hope  of  Gain  resigns. 
By  Jove,  I'll  from  these  Desarts  hasten  home, 
And  swear  that  never  more  I'll  touch  a  Gun. 


APPENDIX  B. 


585 


Honnyman,    These  hateful  Indiana  kidnap  all  the  Game. 
Curse  their  black  Heads !  they  fright  the  Deer  and  Bear, 
And  ev'ry  Animal  that  haunts  the  Wood, 
Or  by  their  Witchcraft  conjure  them  away. 
No  Englishman  can  get  a  single  Shot, 
While  they  go  loaded  home  with  Skins  and  Furs. 
'Twere  to  be  wish'd  not  one  of  them  survived, 
Thus  to  infest  the  World,  and  plague  Mankind. 
Curs'd  Heathen  Infidels !  mere  savage  Beasts ! 
They  don't  deserve  to  breathe  in  Christian  Air, 
And  should  be  hunted  down  like  other  Brutes. 

Orahmtm,    I  only  wish  the  Laws  permitted  us 
To  hunt  the  savage  Herd  where-e'cr  they're  found ; 
I'd  never  leave  the  Trade  of  Hunting  then. 
While  one  remain'd  to  tread  and  range  the  Wood. 

Honnyman.    Curse  on  the  Law,  I  say,  that  makes  it  Death 
To  kill  an  Indian,  more  than  to  kill  a  Snake. 
What  if  'tis  Peace  ?  these  Dogs  deserve  no  Mercy ; 
They  kill'd  my  Father  and  my  eldest  Brother, 
Since  which  I  hate  their  very  Looks  and  Nome. 

Orsboum.    And  I,  since  they  betray'd  and  kill'd  my  Uncle ;  ii 

Tho'  these  are  not  the  same,  'twould  ease  my  Heart  »\ 

To  cleavfi  their  painted  Heads,  and  spill  their  Blood. 
I  abhor,  fi' test,  and  hate  them  all. 
And  now  cou'd  eat  an  Indian's  Heart  with  Pleasure. 

Honnyman.    I'd  join  you,  and  soop  his  savage  Brains  for  Sauce ;  Jl 

I  lose  all  Patience  when  I  think  of  them, 
And,  if  you  will,  we'll  quickly  have  amends 

For  our  long  Travel  and  successless  Hunt,  f: 

And  the  sweet  Pleasure  of  Revenge  to  boot. 

Orsboum.    What  will  you  do  ?    Present,  and  pop  one  down  ? 

Honnt).nan.    Yes,  faith,  the  first  we  meet  well  fraught  with  Furs ; 
Or  if  there's  Two,  and  we  can  make  sure  Work, 
By  Jove,  we'll  ease  the  Rascals  of  their  Packs, 

And  send  them  empty  home  to  their  own  Country.  i    .ii't^,<.\-> .. 

But  then  observe,  that  what  we  do  is  secret,  '•.  r  - . 

Or  the  Hangman  will  come  in  for  Snacks. 

Orsboum.    Trust  me  for  that ;  I'll  join  with  all  my  Heart ; 
Nor  with  a  nicer  Aim,  or  steadier  Hand  .   .  ^i     ; ,  ^  •    .     .  'c 

Would  shoot  a  Tyger  than  I  would  an  Indian.  .,;.  t ■  i.     ;        .  i»,.f 

There  is  a  Couple  stalking  now  this  way  ,*  •       '  ^   k' T 

With  lusty  Packs ;  Heav'n  favour  our  Design.  '  \'<.-/  -^-'l 

Are  you  well  charged?  ,      .  -  vj.*?.  L>.. 

Honnyman,    lam.    Take  you  tlio  nearest,  -t,   Ji  - 

And  mind  to  fire  exactly  when  I  do.  ^i.;  '        .  ..  ' 

-     74 


H 


f 


It 


1 

'i  ii 


586 


APPENDIX  B. 


,a 


'^ 


*  • 


Or«&oum.    A  charming  Chance ! 

Honm/man.    Hiuh,  let  Uiem  ■till  come  nearer. 

[3^  tluKA,  and  run  io  ryflt  the  Indians, 
They're  down,  old  Boy,  a  Brace  of  noble  Bucks ! 

Orsboum.    Well  tallow'd,  faith,  ard  noble  Hides  upon  'em. 

[Taking  up  a  Pack, 
We  might  have  h°  ited  all  the  Season  thro' 
For  Half  this  Game,  and  titought  ourselves  well  paid. 

Honnyman.    By  Jove,  we  might,  and  been  at  great  Elxpence 
For  Lead  and  Powder ;  hero's  a  single  Shot 

Orabourn.    I  swear  I've  got  as  much  as  I  can  carry. 

Honnyman,    And  faith,  I'm  not  behind ;  this  Pack  is  heav}\ 
But  stop ;  we  must  conceal  the  tawny  Dogs, 
Or  their  bloodthirsty  Countrymen  will  find  Uiem, 
And  then  we're  bit.    There'll  be  the  Devil  to  pay ; 
They'll  murder  us,  and  cheat  the  Hangman  too. 

Orsbourn.    Right    We'll  prevent  all  Mischief  of  this  Kind. 
Where  shall  we  hide  their  savage  Carcases  ? 

Honnyman.    There  they  will  lie  conceal'd  and  snug  enough. 

[TJiey  cover  them. 
But  stay  —  perhaps  ere  long  there'll  be  a  War, 
And  then  their  Scalps  will  sell  for  ready  Cash, 
Two  Hundred  Crowns  at  least,  and  that's  worth  saving. 

Orabourn,    Well !  that  is  true ;  no  sooner  said  than  done  — 

[Drawing  hia  Knife. 
Ill  strip  this  Fellow's  painted  greasy  Skull.  [Strips  off  the  Scalp. 

Honnyman,    Now  let  them  sleep  to  Night  without  their  Caps, 

[Takes  the  other  Scalp, 
And  pleasant  Dreams  attend  their  long  Repose.  ;M 

Orabotim,    Their  Guns  and  Hatchets  now  are  lawful  Prize, 
For  they'll  not  need  them  on  their  present  Journey. 

Honnyman.    The  Devil  hates  Arms,  and  dreads  the  Smell  of  Powder ; 
He'll  not  allow  such  Instruments  about  him ; 
They're  free  from  training  now,  they're  in  his  Clutches. 

Orabovm,    But,  Honnyman,  d'ye  think  this  ia  not  Murder  ? 
I  vow  I'm  shocked  a  little  to  see  them  Bcalp'd,  •"   ri 

And  fear  t!i<>ir  Ghosts  will  haunt  us  in  tho  Dark. 

Honnyman.    It's  no  more  Murder  than  to  crack  a  Louse, 
That  is,  if  you'vo  the  Wit  to  keep  it  private.  >  f  y^-' 

And  OS  to  Hnii'iting,  Indians  liave  no  Ghosts, 
But  as  thry  live  like  Boasts,  like  Beasts  they  die. 
I've  killed  a  Dozen  in  this  selfsame  Way, 
And  never  yet  wtw  troubled  with  their  Spirits. 

Orabourn.    Then  I'm  content ;  my  Scruples  arc  removed. 
Aud  what  I've  done,  my  Conscience  justifies. 


APPENDIX  B. 


587 


ri/le  the  Indtatu, 

'em. 

kiitg  up  a  Fade, 


But  wo  must  have  thcso  Guns  and  Ilatchots  alter'd,  ' 

Or  they'll  detect  tli'  Affair,  and  hang  us  botli. 

Honnjftmn.    That's  quickly  done  —  Let  us  with  Speed  return, 
And  think  no  more  of  being  hang'd  or  haunted  ; 
But  turn  our  Fur  to  Gold,  our  Gold  to  Wine, 
Thus  gaily  spend  what  we've  so  slily  won, 
And  bless  the  first  Inventor  of  a  Gun.  [Exeunt. 


t 


The  remaining  scenes  of  this  act  exhibit  the  rudeness  and  insolence  of 
British  officers  and  soldiers  in  their  dealings  with  the  Indians,  and  the 
corruption  of  British  government  agents.  Pontiac  himself  is  introduced 
and  represented  as  indignantly  complaining  of  the  reception  which  ho  and 
his  warriors  meet  with.  These  scenes  are  overcharged  with  blasphemy 
and  ribaldry,  and  it  is  needless  to  preserve  them  here.  The  rest  of  tlie  play 
is  written  in  better  taste,  and  contains  several  passages  of  force  and 
eloquence. 


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APPENDIX    C.  -'-^  "^^ '^^^  ^'"^    ■•  ■ 


-•  'V 


DETROIT    AND   MICHILLIMACKINAC. 


1.    The  Siege  of  Detroit.    (Chap.  IX.-XV.) 

The  authorities  consulted  respecting  the  siege  of  Detroit  consist  of 
numerous  manuscript  letters  of  officers  in  the  fort,  including  tlie  official 
correspondence  of  the  commanding  officer ;  of  several  journals  and  frag- 
ments of  journals ;  of  extracts  from  contemporary  newspapers ;  and  of 
traditions  and  recollections  received  from  Indians  or  aged  Canadians  of 
Detroit 


The  Pontiac  Manuscript. 


This  curious  diary  was  preserved  in  a  Canadian  family  at  Detroit,  and 
afterwards  deposited  with  the  Historical  Society  of  Michigan.  It  is  con- 
jectured to  have  been  the  work  of  a  French  priest  The  original  is  written 
in  bad  French,  and  several  important  parts  are  defaced  or  torn  away.  As 
a  literary  composition,  it  is  quite  worthless,  being  very  diffuse  and  encum- 
bered with  dull  and  trivial  details ;  yet  tliis  very  minuteness  affords  strong 
internal  evidence  of  its  authenticity.  Its  general  exactness  with  respect  to 
facts  is  fully  proved  by  comparing  it  with  contemporary  documents.  I  am 
indebted  to  General  Cass  for  the  copy  in  my  possession,  as  well  as  for  other 
papers  respecting  the  war  in  the  neighborhood  of  Detroit 

The  manuscript  appears  to  have  been  elaborately  written  out  from  a 
rough  journal  kept  during  the  progress  of  the  events  which  it  describes.  It 
commences  somewhat  ambitiously,  as  follows :  — 

"  Pondiac,  great  chief  of  all  the  Ottawas,  Chippewas,  and  Pottawattamies, 
and  of  all  the  nations  of  the  lakes  anii  .ivers  of  tlic  North,  a  man  proud, 
vindictive,  warlike,  and  easily  offended,  under  pretence  of  some  insult  which 
ho  thought  ho  had  received  from  Maj,  Gladwin,  Commander  of  the  Fort, 
conceived  tliat,  being  great  chief  of  all  the  Northern  nations,  only  liimself 


APPENDIX   C. 


589 


and  those  of  his  nations  were  entitled  to  inliabit  tliis  portion  of  the  eartli, 
where  for  sixty  and  odd  years  the  French  had  domiciliated  for  the  purpose 
of  trading,  and  where  the  English  had  governed  during  three  years  by  right 
of  the  conquest  of  Canada.    The  Chief  and  all  his  nation,  whose  bravery 
consists  iu  treachery,  resolved  within  himself  the  entire  destruction  of  the 
English  nation,  and  perhaps  the  Canadians.    In  order  ta  succeed  in  his  un- 
dertaking, which  he  had  not  mentioned  to  any  of  his  nation  the  Ottawas,  he 
engaged  their  aid  by  a  speech,  and  they,  naturally  inclined  to  evil,  did  not 
hesitate  to  obey  him.    But,  as  they  found  themselves  too  weak  to  undertake 
the  enterprise  alone,  their  chief  endeavored  to  draw  to  his  party  the  Chip- 
pewa nation  by  means  of  a  council.    This  nation  was  governed  by  a  chief 
named  Ninevois.     This  man,  who  acknowledged  Pondiac  as  his  chief,  whose 
mind  was  weak,  and  whose  disposition  cruel,  listened  to  his  advances,  and 
joined  him  with  all  his  band.    These  two  nations  consisted  together  of 
about  four  hundred  men.    This  number  did  not  appear  to  him  sufficient.    It 
became  necessary  to  bring  into  their  interests  the  Hurons.    This  nation, 
divided  into  two  bands,  was  governed  by  two  different  chiefs  of  dissimilar 
character,  and  nevertheless  botli  led  by  their  spiritual  father,  a  Jesuit    The 
two  chiefs  of  tliis  last  nation  were  named,  one  Takee,  of  a  temper  sunilar  to 
Pondiac's,  and  the  other  Teata,  a  man  of  cautious  disposition  and  of  perfect 
prudence.    This  last  was  not  easily  won,  and  having  no  disposition  to  do 
evil,  he  refused  to  listen  to  the  deputies  sent  by  Pondiac,  and  sent  them  back. 
They  therefore  addressed  themselves  to  the  first  mentioned  of  this  nation, 
by  whom  tliey  were  listened  to,  and  from  whom  they  received  the  war-belt, 
with  promise  to  join  themselves  to  Pondiac  and  Ninevois,  the  Ottawas  and 
Chippewas  chiefs.    It  was  settled  by  means  of  wampum-belts,  (a  manner 
of  making  themselves  understood  amongst  distant  savages,)  tliat  they  should 
hold  a  council  on  the  27th  of  April,  when  should  be  decided  the  day  and 
hour  of  the  attack,  and  the  precautions  necessary  to  take  in  order  that  tlieir 
perfidy  should  not  bo  discovered.    The  manner  of  counting  used  by  the 
Indians  is  by  tlie  moon ;  and  it  was  resolved,  in  the  way  I  have  mentioned, 
that  tliis  council  should  bo  held  on  the  15th  day  of  the  moon,  which  cor- 
responded wiih  Wednesday  tlie  27th  of  the  month  of  April." 

The  writer  next  describes  the  council  at  the  River  Ecorces,  and  recounts 
at  full  length  the  story  of  the  Delaware  Indian  who  visited  the  Great 
Spirit.  "  The  Chiefs,"  he  says,  "  listened  to  Pondiac  as  to  an  oracle,  and 
told  him  they  were  ready  to  do  any  thing  he  should  require." 

He  relates  with  great  minuteness  how  Pontiac,  with  his  chosen  warriors, 
came  to  the  fort  on  the  1st  of  May,  to  dance  the  caluniet  dance,  and  observe 
the  strength  and  disposition  of  tlie  garrison,  and  describes  the  council  sub- 
sequently hold  at  the  Pottawattamie  village,  in  order  to  adjust  the  plan  of 
attack. 

"  The  day  fixed  upon  having  arrived,  all  tlie  Ottawas,  Pondiac  at  their 
iicad,  and  the  bad  band  of  tlie  Hurons,  Takee  at  their  head,  met  at  the 
Pottawattamie  village,  where  the  premeditated  council  was  to  be  held. 
Care  was  taken  to  send  all  the  women  out  of  the  village  that  the^  mi^ht  not 

°  XX 


^       I 


I 


590 


APPENDIX   C. 


1' 

^■•"    :    i 

t 
1 

'.1fR)HB»>nii' 


discover  what  was  decided  upon.  Pondiac  then  ordered  sentinels  to  be 
placed  around  the  village,  to  prevent  any  interruption  to  their  council.  These 
precautions  taken,  each  seated  himself  in  the  circle,  according  to  his  rank, 
and  Pondiac,  as  great  chief  of  the  league,  thus  addressed  them :  — 

"  It  is  important,  my  brothers,  that  we  should  exterminate  from  our  land 
this  nation,  whose  only  object  is  our  death.  You  must  be  all  sensible,  as  well 
as  myself,  that  we  can  no  longer  supply  our  wants  in  the  way  we  were 
accustomed  to  do  with  our  Fathers  the  French.  They  sell  us  their  goods 
at  double  the  price  that  the  French  made  us  pay,  and  yet  their  merchandise 
is  good  for  nothing ;  for  no  sooner  have  we  bought  a  blanket  or  other  thing 
to  cover  us  than  it  is  necessary  to  procure  others  against  the  time  of  depart- 
ing for  our  wintering  ground.  Neither  will  they  let  us  have  them  on  credit, 
as  our  brothers  the  French  used  to  do.  When  I  visit  the  English  chief,  and 
inform  him  of  the  death  of  any  of  our  comrades,  instead  of  lamenting,  as  our 
brothers  the  French  used  to  do,  they  make  game  of  us.  If  I  ask  him  for 
any  thing  for  our  sick,  he  refuses,  and  tells  us  he  does  not  want  us,  from 
which  it  is  apparent  he  seeks  our  death.  We  must  therefore,  in  return, 
destroy  them  without  delay ;  there  is  nothing  to  prevent  us :  there  are 
but  few  of  them,  and  we  shall  easily  overcome  them,  —  why  should  we  not 
attack  them  ?  Are  we  not  men  ?  Have  I  not  shown  you  the  belts  I 
received  from  our  Great  Father  the  King  of  France  ?  He  tells  us  to 
strike,  —  why  should  we  not  listen  to  his  words  ?  What  do  you  fear  ?  Tlie 
time  has  arrived.  Do  you  fear  that  our  brothers  the  French,  who  are  now 
among  us,  will  hinder  us  ?  They  are  not  acquainted  with  our  designs,  and 
if  they  did  know  them,  could  they  prevent  them  ?  You  know,  as  well  as 
myself,  that  when  the  English  came  upon  our  lands,  to  drive  from  them  our 
father  BellestrCj  they  took  from  tlio  French  all  the  guns  that  they  have,  so 
that  they  have  now  no  guns  to  defend  themselves  with.  Therefore  now  is 
the  time :  let  us  strike.  Should  there  be  any  French  to  take  their  part,  let 
us  strike  them  as  we  do  the  English.  Remember  what  the  Giver  of  Life 
desired  our  brother  the  Delaware  to  do :  tliis  regards  us  as  much  as  it  does 
them.  I  have  sent  belts  and  speeches  to  our  friends  the  Chippeways  of 
Saginaw,  and  our  brothers  the  Ottawas  of  Michillimacinac,  and  to  tliose  of 
the  Riviere  k  la  Tranche,  (Thames  River,)  inviting  them  to  join  us,  and  they 
will  not  delay.  In  the  mean  time,  let  tis  strike.  There  is  no  longer  any 
time  to  lose,  and  when  the  English  shall  be  defeated,  we  will  stop  the  way, 
so  that  no  more  shall  return  upon  our  lands. 

"  This  discourse,  which  Pondiac  delivered  in  a  tone  of  much  energy,  had 
upon  the  whole  council  all  the  effect  which  he  could  have  expected,  and 
they  all,  with  common  accord,  swore  the  entire  destruction  of  the  English 
nation. 

"  At  the  breaking  up  of  the  council,  it  was  decided  tliat  Pondiac,  with  sixty 
chosen  men,  should  go  to  the  Fort  to  ask  for  a  grand  council  from  the  Eng- 
lish commander,  and  that  they  should  have  arms  concealed  under  their 
blankets.  That  tlie  remainder  of  the  village  should  follow  them  armed  with 
tomahawks,  daggers,  and  knives,  concealed  under  their  blankets,  and  should 


APPENDIX   C. 


591 


enter  the  Fort,  and  walk  about  in  such  a  manner  aa  not  to  excite  suspicion, 
whilst  tlie  others  held  council  with  the  Commander.  The  Ottawa  ifvomen 
were  also  to  be  furnished  with  short  guns  and  other  offeobive  weapons 
concealed  under  their  blankets.  They  were  to  go  into  the  back  streets  in 
the  Fort  They  were  then  to  wait  for  the  signal  agreed  upon,  which  was 
the  cry  of  death,  which  the  Grand  Chief  was  to  give,  on  which  they  should 
altogether  strike  upon  the  English,  taking  care  not  to  hurt  any  of  the  French 
inhabiting  the  Fort." 

The  author  of  the  diary,  unlike  other  contemporary  writers,  states  that 
the  plot  was  disclosed  to  Gladwyn  by  a  man  of  the  Ottawa  tribe,  and  not 
by  an  Ojibwa  girl.  He  says,  however,  tliat  on  the  day  after  the  failure  of 
the  design,  Pontiac  sent  to  the  Pottawattamie  village  in  order  to  seize  an 
Ojibwa  girl  whom  he  suspected  of  having  betrayed  him.  t  vfi 

"Pondiac  ordered  four  Indians  to  take  her  and  bring  her  before  him; 
these  men,  naturally  inclined  to  disorder,  were  not  long  in  obeying  their 
chief;  they  crossed  the  river  immediately  in  front  of  their  village,  and  passed 
into  the  Fort  naked,  having  nothing  but  their  breech-clouts  on  and  their 
knives  in  tlieir  hands,  and  crying  all  the  way  that  their  plan  had  been  de- 
feated, which  induced  the  French  people  of  tiie  Port,  who  knew  nothing  of 
the  designs  of  the  Indians,  to  suspect  that  some  bad  design  was  going 
for>.  ard,  either  against  themselves  or  the  English.  They  arrived  at  the 
I'"  tamie  village,  and  in  fact  found  tlie  woman,  who  waa  far  from 

th^:.  I.  )f  tliom;  nevertheless  tliey  seized  her,  and  obliged  her  to  march 
b  ..  .^  uiem,  uttering  cries  of  joy  in  the  manner  they  do  when  they  hold  a 
victim  in  their  clutches  on  whom  they  are  going  to  exercise  their  cruelty : 
they  made  her  enter  the  Fort,  and  took  her  before  the  Commandant,  as  if 
to  confront  her  with  him,  and  asked  him  if  it  was  not  from  her  he  had  learnt 
their  design ;  but  they  were  no  better  satisfied  than  if  they  had  kept  them- 
selves quiet  They  obtained  from  that  OflScer  bread  and  beer  for  them- 
selves, and  for  her.    They  then  led  her  to  their  chief  in  the  village." 

The  diary  leaves  us  in  the  dark  as  to  the  treatment  which  the  girl 
received ;  but  there  is  a  tradition  among  the  Canadians  that  Pontiac,  with 
his  own  hand,  gave  her  a  severe  beating  with  a  species  of  racket,  such  as  the 
Indians  use  in  their  ball-play.  An  old  Indian  told  Henry  Conner,  formerly 
United  States  interpreter  at  Detroit,  that  she  survived  her  punishment,  and 
lived  for  many  years ;  but  at  length,  contracting  intemperate  habits,  she  fell, 
when  intoxicated,  into  a  kettle  of  boiling  maple  sap,  and  was  so  severely 
scalded  that  she  died  in  consequence. 

The  outbreak  of  hostilities,  the  attack  on  the  fort,  and  the  detention  of 
Campbell  and  McDougal  are  related  at  great  length,  and  with  all  the  minute- 
ness of  an  eye-witness.  The  substance  of  tlie  narrative  is  incorporated  in 
tlie  body  of  the  work.  The  diary  is  very  long,  detailmg  the  incidents  of 
cverr  passing  day,  from  the  7tli  of  May  to  the  31st  of  July.  Here  it  breaks 
off  0  bruptly  in  the  middle  of  a  sentence,  tlio  remaining  part  having  been 
lost  »r  torn  away.  The  following  extracts,  taken  at  random,  will  serve  to 
indicate  the  general  stylo  and  character  of  tlie  journal : —     -.i 


pi- 


"u  ^            I'  ;f 

ii             1 

(l 


1 

1 

i^ 

i 
i 

592 


APPENDIX  C. 


"  Saturday,  June  4th.  About  4  P.  M.  cries  of  death  were  heard  from  the 
Indians.  The  cause  was  not  known,  but  it  was  supposed  they  had  obtain".' 
some  prize  on  the  Lake. 

"  Sunday,  June  5th.  The  Indians  fired  a  few  shots  ujon  the  Fort  to-day. 
About  2  P.  M.  cries  of  death  were  again  heard  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
River.  A  nuir.'  sr  of  Indians  were  descried,  part  on  foot  and  part  mounted. 
Others  were  ta'i  ng  up  two  trading  boatp,  which  they  had  taken  on  the  lake. 
The  veusel  fired  several  shoH  at  tiiem,  hoping  they  would  abandon  their 
prey,  but  they  reached  Pondiac's  camp  uninjured."    .    .    . 

"  About  7  P.  M.  news  came  that  a  number  of  Indians  hud  gone  down  as 
far  as  Turkey  Island,  opposite  the  small  vessel  which  was  anchored  there, 
but  that,  on  seeing  them,  she  had  dropped  down  into  the  open  Lake,  to  wait 
for  a  fair  wind  to  come  up  the  river. 

"  Monday,  June  20th.  The  Indians  fired  some  shots  upon  the  fort  About 
4  P.  M.  news  was  brought,  that  Presquisle  and  Beef  River  Forts,  which  had 
been  established  by  the  French,  and  were  now  occupied  by  the  English,  had 
been  destroyed  by  the  Indians."    .    .    . 

"  Wednesday,  June  22d.  The  Indians,  whose  whole  attention  was  directed 
to  the  vessel,  did  not  trouble  the  Fort.  In  the  course  of  the  day,  the  news 
of  the  taking  of  Presquisle  was  confinned,  as  a  great  number  of  the  Indians 
were  seen  coming  along  the  shore  witli  prisoners.  The  Commandant  was 
among  the  number,  and  with  hm  one  woman:  both  were  presented  to  the 
Hurons.  In  the  afternoon,  the  Commandant  received  news  of  the  lading  of 
the  vessel,  and  the  number  of  men  on  board.  The  Indians  again  visited 
the  French  for  provisions. 

"  Thursday,  June  23d.  Very  early  in  the  mommg,  a  great  number  of 
Indians  were  seen  passing  behind  the  Fort :  they  joined  those  below,  and 
all  repaired  to  Turkey  Island.  The  river  at  this  place  is  very  narrow. 
The  Indians  commenced  making  intrenchments  of  trees,  &c.,  on  the  beach, 
where  the  vessel  was  to  pass,  whose  arrival  they  awaited.  About  10 
of  the  preceding  night,  the  wind  coming  aft,  the  vessel  weighed  anchor, 
and  came  up  the  river.  When  opposite  the  Island  the  wind  fell,  and  th-^^ 
were  obliged  to  throw  the  anchor ;  as  they  knew  they  could  not  reach  tJie 
Fort  without  being  attacked  by  the  Indians,  they  kept  a  strict  watch.  In 
order  to  deceive  the  Indians,  the  captain  had  hid  in  the  hold  sixty  of  liis 
men,  suspecting  that  the  Indians,  seeing  only  about  a  dozen  men  on  deck, 
would  try  to  take  the  vessel,  which  occurred  as  he  expected.  About  9  at 
night  they  got  in  their  canoes,  and  made  for  the  vessel,  intending  to  board 
her.  They  were  seen  far  off  by  one  of  the  sentinels.  The  captain  imme- 
diately ordered  up  all  !iis  men  in  the  greatest  silence,  and  placed  th^m 
along  the  sides  of  the  vessel,  with  their  guns  in  their  hands,  loaded,  with 
orders  to  wait  the  signal  for  firing,  which  was  the  rap  of  a  hammer  on  the 
mast.  The  Indians  were  allowed  to  approach  within  less  than  gunshot, 
when  the  signal  was  given,  and  a  discharge  of  cannon  and  small  arms  made 
upon  them.  They  retreated  to  their  intrcnchmcnt  with  the  loss  of  fourteen 
killed  and  fourteen  wounded ;  from  which  they  fired  during  the  night,  and 


APPENDIX  C. 


593 


wounded  two  men.    In  the  morning,  the  vessel  dropped  down  to  the  Lake 


a  luo.:?  favourable  wind. 


Two 


-'  Friday,  June  24th.    The  Indians  were  occupied  with  the  vessel. 
Indians  back  of  the  Fort  were  pursued  by  twenty  men,  and  escaped. 

'' Saturday,  June  25th.    Nothing  occurred  this  day.  -iw 

"  Sunday,  June  96th.    Nothing  of  consequence.  *■ ,       j *,i', 

"  Monday,  June  27th.  Mr.  Gamelin,  who  was  in  the  pra  ;tice  of  visiting 
Messrs.  Campbell  and  McDougall,  brought  a  letter  to  the  Commandant 
from  Mr.  Campbell,  dictated  by  Pondiac,  in  which  he  requested  the  Com- 
mandant to  surrender  the  Fort,  as  in  a  few  days  he  expected  Kee-no-  cha- 
meck,  great  chief  of  the  Chippewas,  with  eight  hundred  men  of  his  nation ; 
that  he  (Ponc'.iac)  would  not  then  be  able  to  command  them,  and  as  soon 
as  they  arrived,  they  would  scalp  »11  the  English  in  the  Fort  The 
Commandant  only  answered  that  he  cared  as  little  for  him  as  he  did  for 
them."    .    .    . 

^'This  evening,  the  Commandant  was  informed  that  the  Ottawas  and 
Chippewas  had  undertaken  another  raft,  which  might  be  more  worthy  of 
attention  than  the  former  ones :  it  was  reported  to  be  of  pine  boards,  and 
intended  to  be  long  enough  to  go  across  the  river.  By  setting  fire  to  every 
part  of  it,  it  could  not  help,  by  its  length,  coming  in  contact,  with  the  vessel, 
which  by  this  means  they  expected  would  certainly  take  fire.  Some  firing 
took  place  between  the  vessel  and  Indians,  but  without  eflwct. 

"  Tuesday,  July  19th.  The  Indians  attempted  to  fire  on  the  Fort,  but 
being  discovered,  they  were  soon  made  to  retreat  by  a  few  shot. 

"  Wednesday,  July  20th.  Confirmation  came  to  the  Fort  of  the  report  of 
the  18th,  and  that  the  Indians  had  been  four  days  at  work  at  their  rafl,  and 
that  it  would  take  eight  more  to  finish  it.  The  Commandant  ordered  that 
two  boats  should  be  lined  or  clapboarded  with  oak  plank,  two  inches  thick, 
and  the  same  defence  to  be  raii:ed  above  the  gunnels  of  the  boats  of  two 
feet  high.  A  swivel  was  put  on  each  of  them,  and  placed  in  such  a  way 
that  they  could  be  pointed  in  three  different  directions. 

"  Thureday,  July  Slst.  The  Indiaus  were  too  busily  occupied  to  pay  any 
attention  to  the  Fort ;  so  earnest  were  they  in  the  work  of  the  raft  that  they 
hardly  allowed  themselves  time  to  eat.  The  Commandant  farther  availed 
himself  of  the  time  allowed  him  before  the  premeditated  attack  to  put  eveiy 
thing  in  proper  order  to  repulse  it.  He  ordered  that  two  stronjf  graplins 
.ihould  be  provided  for  each  of  the  barges,  a  strong  iron  chain  of  fifteen 
feet  was  to  be  attached  to  the  boat,  and  conductirig  a  strong  cable  under 
water,  fastened  to  the  graplhis,  and  the  boats  were  intended  to  be  so  dis- 
posed as  to  cover  the  vessel  by  mooring  them  by  the  help  of  the  above 
pr*.  parations,  above  her.  The  inhabitants  of  the  S.  W.  ridge,  or  hill,  again 
got  a  false  alarm.  It  was  said  the  Indians  intended  attacking  them  during 
the  night :  they  kept  on  their  guard  till  morning. 

"  Friday,  July  22d.  An  Abenakee  Indian  arrived  this  day,  saying  that  he 
came  direct  fiom  Montreal,  and  gave  out  that  a  large  fleet  of  French  was  on 
its  way  to  Canada,  full  of  troops,  to  dispossess  tJie  FjUglish  of  the  country. 

75  XX  * 


li^ 
M 


m 


it 


?  '■"»'• 


f 

4 


*•  f  ■; 


594 


APPENDIX  C. 


I 


^ory  might  appear,  it  had  the  effect  of  rousing 
id  the  Indians  set  about  their  raft  with  more 


However  fallacious  such  n 
Pondiac  from  his  inaction, 
energy  than  ever.  They  had  left  off  working  at  it  since  yesterday."  .  .  . 
It  is  needless  to  continue  these  extracts  farther.  Those  already  given 
wUl  convey  a  sufficient  idea  of  the  character  of  the  diary. 


iigmt^i^ 


■  f  5f*rtJiM^.  ■ 


-if>». 


REMINISCENCES  OP  AGED  CANADIANS. 


t-ti.'A 


-■  About  the  year  1824,  General  Cass,  with  the  design  of  writing  a  narrative 
of  the  siege  of  Deu^it  by  Pontiac,  caused  inquiry  to  be  made  among  the 
aged  Canadian  inhabitants,  many  of  whom  could  distinctly  remember  thu 
events  of  1'''63.  The  accounts  received  from  them  were  committed  to 
paper,  and  were  placed  by  General  Cass,  with  great  liberality,  in  the  writer's 
hands.  They  afford  an  interesting  mass  of  evidence,  as  worthy  of  confi- 
dence as  evidence  of  the  kind  can  be.  With  but  one  exception,  —  the 
account  of  Maxwell,  —  they  do  not  clash  with  the  testimory  of  contemporary 
documents.  Much  caution  has,  however,  been  observed  in  their  use  ;  and 
no  essential  statement  has  been  made  on  their  unsupported  authority.  The 
most  prominent  of  these  ai  '■ounts  are  those  of  Peltier,  St.  Aubin,  Gouin, 
Meloche,  Parent,  and  Maxwt'l. 


Peltier's  Account. 


*^fc>«J*fti'',  ,«.'• 


U 


M.  Peltier  was  seventeen  years  old  at  the  time  of  Pontiac's  war.  His 
narrative,  though  one  of  the  longest  of  the  collection,  is  imperfect,  since, 
during  n  great  part  of  the  siege,  he  was  absent  from  Detroit  in  search  of 
runaway  horses,  belonging  to  his  father.  His  recollection  of  the  earlier 
part  of  the  affair  is,  however,  clear  and  minute.  He  relates,  with  apparent 
credulity,  the  story  of  the  hand  of  the  murdered  Fisher  protruding  from  the 
earth,  as  if  in  supplication  for  the  neglected  rites  of  burial.  He  remembers 
that,  soon  after  the  failure  of  Pontiac's  attempt  to  surprise  the  garrison,  lie 
punished  by  a  severe  flogging  a  woman  named  Catharine,  accused  of  having 
betrayed  the  plot.  He  was  at  Detroit  during  the  several  attacks  on  the 
armed  vessels,  and  the  attempts  to  set  them  on  fire  by  means  of  blazing  rafts. 


St.  Aubin's  Account. 


<>•■'■ 


St.  Aubin  was  fifteen  years  old  at  the  time  of  the  siege.  It  was  liis 
mother  who  crossed  over  to  Pontiac's  village  shortly  before  the  attempt  on 
the  garrison,  and  discovered  tlie  Indiane  in  Uie  act  of  sawing  off  the  muzzles 
of  their  guns,  as  related  in  the  narrative.    He  remembers  Pontiac  at  his 


APPENDIX  C. 


595 


head-quarters,  at  the  house  of  Meloche,  where  his  commissaries  served  out 
provision  to  the  Indians.  He  himself  was  ejnong  those  who  conveyed 
cattle  across  the  river  to  the  English  at  a  time  when  they  were  threatened 
with  starvation.  One  of  his  most  vivid  recollections  is  that  of  seeing  the 
head  of  Captain  Dalzell  stuck  on  th  J  picket  of  a  garden  fence,  on  the  day 
after  the  battle  of  Bloody  Bridge.  His  narrative  is  on?  of  the  most  copious 
and  authentic  of  the  series.  i.     >-  kj;'         i  •<;;/';  vr 


Gouin's  Account. 


fJ'.'i.X.i.lS    .-' 


M.  Gouin  was  but  eleven  years  old  at  the  time  of  tlie  war.  His  father 
was  a  prominent  trader,  and  had  gr  at  influence  over  the  Indians.  On  sev- 
eral occasions,  he  acted  as  mediator  between  Vhem  and  the  English,  and 
when  Major  Campbell  was  bent  on  visiting  the  camp  of  Pontiac,  the  elder 
Gouin  strenuously  endeavored  u)  prevent  the  attempt.  Pontiac  often  came 
to  him  for  advice.  His  son  bears  emphatic  testimony  to  the  extraordinary 
control  which  the  chief  exercised  over  his  followers,  and  to  the  address 
which  he  displayed  in  the  management  of  his  commissary  department. 
This  account  contains  many  particulars  not  elsewhere  mentioned,  though 
bearing  all  the  appearance  of  truth.  It  appears  to  have  been  composed 
partly  from  the  recollections  of  the  younger  Gouin,  and  partly  from  informa- 
tion derived  from  his  father. 


Meloche's  Accocwt.  ' 

Mrs.  Meloche  lived,  when  a  child,  on  the  borders  of  the  Detroit,  between 
the  river  and  the  camp  of  Pontiac.  On  one  occasion,  when  the  English 
were  cannonading  the  camp  from  their  armed  schooner  in  the  river,  a  shot 
struck  her  father's  house,  throwing  down  a  port  of  the  walls.  After  the 
death  of  Major  Campbell,  she  picked  up  a  ppcket-book  belonging  to  him, 
wliich  the  Indians  had  left  on  the  ground.  It  was  full  of  papers,  and  she 
carried  it  io  the  English  in  the  fort. 


m 


11 


V 


111?- 


\\t- 


^!i 


,  ^  ^,     ,    ,,  Parent's  Account. 

M.  Parent  was  twenty-two  years  old  when  the  war  broke  out.  His  recol- 
lections of  the  siege  are,  however,  less  exact  than  those  of  some  of  the 
former  witnesses,  though  his  narrative  preserves  several  interesting  in- 
cidents. 

Maxwell's  Account. 


Maxwell  was  an  English  provincial,  and  pretended  to  liavc  been  a  soldier 
under  Gladwyn.  His  story  belies  the  statenr.ent.  It  has  all  tlie  air  of  a 
narrative  made  up  from  hearsay,  and  largely  e  nbellished  from  imagination. 
It  has  been  made  use   of  only  in  a  few  -nstances,  where  it  is  amply 


"'i     '      "      ".-■.'. 

'~K. 

1  \ 

'.f^' 

I.- 

596 


APPENDIX  C. 


supported  by  less  questionable  evidence.  This  account  seemu  to  have 
been  committed  to  paper  by  Maxwell  himself,  as  the  style  is  very  rude 
and  illiterate. 

The  remaining  manuscripts  consulted  witli  reference  to  the  siege  of 
Detroit  have  been  obtained  from  the  State  Paper  Office  of  London,  and 
from  a  few  private  autograph  collections.  Some  additional  information  has 
been  derived  from  the  columns  of  the  New  York  Mercury  and  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Gazette  for  1763,  where  various  letters  written  by  officers  at  Detroit 
are  published. 


'€  ^}  .      Aj-'.^iUwi 


mm. , 


2.  The  M  lssacre  of  Micbillimacmnac.    (Chap.  XVII.) 


>    i.S 


iij&ii 


-  The  following  letter  may  be  regarded  with  interest,  as  having  been 
written  by  the  commander  rf  the  unfortunate  garrison  a  few  days  after*  the 
massacre.  A  copy  of  the  original  was  procured  from  the  State  P'  per 
Office  of  London. 


^:^6 


:'ifMlk-H^^S^in 


p 

■  J/  'j£«ifft.-  -*  Michillimackinae,  12  June,  1763. 

Sir: 

Notwithstanding  what  I  wrote  you  in  my  last,  that  all  tlie  savages  were 
arrived,  and  that  every  thing  seemed  in  perfect  tranquility,  yot,  on  the  4tli 
instant,  the  Chippeways,  who  live  in  a  plain  near  this  fort,  assembled  to  play 
ball,  as  they  had  done  almost  every  day  since  their  arrival.  They  played 
from  morning  till  noon ;  then  throwing  their  ball  close  to  the  gate,  and  ob- 
serving Lieut  Lesley  and  me  a  few  paces  out  of  it,  tliey  came  behind  us, 
seized  and  carried  us  into  the  woods. 

In  the  mean  time  the  rest  rushed  into  the  Fort,  where  they  found  their 
squaws,  whom  they  had  previously  planted  tliere,  with  tlieir  hatchets  liid 
under  their  blankets,  which  they  took,  and  in  an  instant  killed  Lieut  Jamet 
and  fifteen  rank  and  file,  and  a  trader  named  Tracy.  They  wounded  two, 
and  took  the  rest  of  the  Garrison  prisoners,  five  [seven,  Henry]  of  wlioni 
they  have  since  killed. 

They  made  prisoners  all  the  English  Traders,  and  robbed  them  of  every 
thing  they  had ;  but  tliey  offered  no  violence  to  the  persons  or  property  of 
any  of  tlie  Frenchmen. 

When  tliat  massacre  was  over,  Messrs.  Langlade  and  Farli,  the  Inter- 
preter, came  down  to  the  place  where  Lieut  Lesley  and  me  were  prisoners, 
and  on  their  giving  themselves  na  security  to  return  us  when  demanded, 
they  obtained  leave  for  us  to  go  to  the  Fort,  under  a  guard  of  savages,  wliicli 
gave  time,  by  the  assistance  of  the  gentlemen  above  mentioned,  to  send  for 
the  Outaways,  wlio  came  down  on  the  first  notice,  and  were  very  much  dis- 
pleased at  what  the  Chippeways  had  done. 

Suice  the  arrival  of  the  Oataways  they  have  done  every  tiling  in  tlicir 
power  to  serve  us,  and  with  what  prisoners  the  Chippeways  had  given  tliem, 


// 


APPENDIX  C. 


597 


lae,  12  June,  1763. 


and  what  they  have  bought,  I  have  now  with  mo  Lieut  Lesley  and  eleven 
privates,  and  the  other  four  of  the  Garrison,  who  are  yet  living,  remain  in 
the  hands  of  the  Chippeways. 

The  Chippeways,  who  are  superior  in  number  to  the  Cutaways,  have  de- 
clared in  Council  to  them  that  if  they  do  not  remove  us  out  of  the  Fort, 
they  will  cut  off  all  communication  to  this  Post,  by  which  means  all  the 
Convoys  of  Merchants  from  Montreal,  La  Baye,  St  Joseph,  and  the  upper 
posts,  would  perish.  But  if  the  news  of  your  posts  being  att8.cked  (which 
they  say  was  the  reason  why  they  took  up  the  hatchet)  be  false,  and  you 
can  send  up  a  strong  reinforcement,  with  provisions,  &c.,  accompanied  by 
some  of  your  savages,  I  believe  the  post  might  be  reestablished  again. 

Since  this  affair  happened,  two  canoes  arrived  from  Montreal,  which  put 
in  my  power  to  make  a  present  to  the  Ottaway  nation,  who  very  well  deserve 
any  thing  that  can  be  done  for  them. 

I  have  been  very  much  cibliged  to  Messrs.  Langlade  and  Farli,  the  Inter- 
preter, as  likewise  to  the  Jesuit,  for  the  many  good  offices  they  have  done  us 
on  this  occasion.  The  Priest  seems  inclinable  to  go  down  to  your  post  for 
a  day  or  two,  which  I  am  very  glad  of,  as  he  is  a  very  good  man,  and  har",  a 
great  deal  to  say  with  the  savages,  hereabout,  who  will  believe  every  thing 
he  tells  them  on  his  return,  which  I  hope  will  be  soon.  The  Cutaways  say 
they  will  take  Lieut  Lesley,  me,  and  the  Eleven  men  which  I  mentioned 
before  were  in  their  hands,  up  to  their  village,  and  there  keep  us,  till  they 
hear  what  is  doing  at  your  Post.    They  have  sent  tliis  canot  for  that  purpose. 

I  refer  you  to  the  Priest  for  the  particulars  of  tliis  melancholy  affair,  and 
am,  Dea/  Sir, 

Youid  very  sincerely, 
'''  [Signed]    Geo.  Etherinqtoit. 

To  Major  GtADWTW.     ,'f  },■..;.-, «% 

P.  S.  The  Indians  that  are  to  carry  the  Priest  to  Detroit  will  not  under- 
take to  land  him  at  the  Fort,  but  at  some  of  the  Indian  villages  near  it ;  so 
you  must  not  take  it  amiss  that  he  does  not  pay  you  the  first  visit.  And 
once  more  I  beg  that  nothing  may  stop  your  sending  of  him  back,  the  next 
<!ay  after  his  arrival,  if  possible,  aa  we  shall  be  at  a  great  loss  for  the  want 
of  him,  and  I  make  no  doubt  that  you  will  do  all  in  your  power  to  make 
peace,  as  you  see  the  situation  we  are  in,  and  send  up  provision  aa  soon  as 
possible,  and  Ammunition,  as  what  we  had  was  pillaged  by  the  savages. 

.    -  Adieu. 

'V'l:  Geo.  ETHERiNGTo::f. 


'  Pi 


If:: 


V  1 


frit 


( 


s  I 


\1 


4* 


«'! 

<■-•    '■         ^■■\i 

* 

^>.     :.    .       . 

-  •  -/^ 

i/^J 

'jif'^'l  ifY 

i  .'■                        '  >    f 

-,'.    ■,\:.  ,  .-I  r  .  '•■■  '■iT.t.t^  "''>i'.*  '>•'. 

^h 

<■-,. 

,vf-'=»**'rr; 

,;. 

:■> 

\. 

',[.■:  T!v(  rtrj- 

\J-;J*    ■■~\-y-r. 

^-      •'    .;:•>'!    Mf^S^i.f   ft<.>fy!>«J 

"i.nV 

>->^ 

'(,. . 

;pf>' 

'.'■IW 

><■'■                 -  . 

APPENDIX 

D. 

■  i 

''m- 

j' 

..■,;    -       ,    .'■',■ 

(  '■'•■  '" 

-    -.'■'It-    t   ■    .,<: 

:;<-•'  ;:  -.:-  1..  '      !-  n  .•-.]  ;. 

n'^' .' . 

' 

'  :v-i- 

:.-." 

''■  •'.'  ■ 

;      .'■  :'-!■■  c'. 

THE  WAR  ON  THE  BORDERS. 

'TAJ,         \'  ■ 

i  .      _  ,»i   ....  '>  -•__ 

,    . ,  -t  ,.  _- 1                  i.  f    ,  .'. 

'■■ ,  <:  J 

'■•   : 

..  ' 

"•V":''      ' 

,  ,,    ;  ,,,,.        The  Battle  of  Bcsht  Run.    (Chap.  XX.) 

The  despatches  written  by  Colonel  Bouquet,  immediately  after  the 
two  battles  near  Bushy  Run,  contain  so  full  and  clear  an  account  of 
those  engagements,  that  the  collateral  authorities  consulted  have  served 
rather  to  decorate  and  enliven  the  narrative  than  to  add  to  it  any  important 
facta.  The  first  of  these  letters  waa  written  by  Bouquet  under  the  appre- 
hension that  he  should  not  survive  the  expected  conflict  of  the  next  day. 
Both  were  forwarded  to  the  commander-in-chief  by  the  same  express,  within 
a  few  days  after  the  victory.  The  letters  as  here  given  we^-e  copied  from 
the  originals  in  the  London  ofSces.  ' 


Sivl 


•  il.''  ?k'Tt^.tJ.  it^f  ■^v^.i';T  'vJ,*  V.I 


Camp  at  Edge  Hill,  26  Miles  from  ) 
Fort  Pitt,  5th  August,  1763.      ) 


The  Second  Instant  the  Troops  and  Convoy  Arrived  at  Ligonier,  whence 
I  could  obtain  no  Intelligence  of  the  Enemy ;  The  Expresses  Sent  since 
the  beginning  of  July,  having  been  Either  killed,  or  Obliged  to  Return, 
all  the  Passes  being  Occupied  by  the  Enemy :  In  this  uncertainty  I  Deter- 
mined to  Leave  all  the  Waggons  with  the  Powder,  and  a  Quantity  of 
Stores  and  Provisions,  at  Ligonier ;  And  on  the  4th  proceeded  with  the 
Troops,  and  about  350  Horses  Loaded  with  Flour. 

I  Intended  to  have  Halted  to  Day  at  Bushy  Run,  (a  Mile  beyond  this 
Camp,)  and  after  having  Refreshed  the  Men  and  Horses,  to  have  Marched 
in  the  Night  over  Turtle  Creek,  a  very  Dangerous  Defile  of  Several  Miles, 
Commanded  by  High  and  Craggy  Hills :  But  at  one  o'clock  this  Afternoon, 
after  a  march  of  17  Miles,  the  Savages  suddenly  Attacked  our  Advanced 
Guard,  which  was  immediately  Supported  by  the  two  Light  Infantry  Com- 
panies of  the  42d  Regiment,  Who  Drove  tlie  Enemy  from  their  Ambuscade, 
and  pursued  them  a  good  Way.    The  Savages  Returned  to  the  Attack,  and 


APPENDIX  D. 


599 


h.:."ii  li. 


X.) 

(liatcly  after  tlie 
ir  an  account  of 
ilted  have  served 
0  it  any  important 
under  the  appre- 
of  the  next  day. 
je  express,  within 
Hre^'e  copied  from 


,  26  Miles  from  ) 
uguBt,  1763.      5 

Ligonier,  whence 
esses  Sent  since 
iliged  to  Return, 
:ertainty  I  Deter- 
d  a  Quantity  of 
iceeded  witli  the 


the  Fire  being  Obstinate  on  our  Front,  and  Extending  along  our  Flanks, 
We  made  a  General  Charge,  with  the  whole  Lino,  to  Dislodge  the  Savages 
from  the  Heights,  in  whit  h  attempt  Wo  succeeded  without  Obtaining  by  it 
any  Decisive  Advantage  ;  for  as  soon  as  they  were  driven  from  One  Post, 
they  Appeared  on  Another,  'till,  by  continual  Reinforcements,  they  were  at 
last  able  to  Surround  Us,  and  attacked  the  Convoy  Left  in  our  Rear ;  This 
Obliged  us  to  March  Back  to  protect  it ;  The  Action  then  became  General, 
and  though  we  were  attacked  on  Every  Side,  and  the  Savages  Exerted 
themselves  with  Uncommon  Resolution,  they  were  constantly  Repulsed 
with  Loss.  —  We  also  Suffered  Considerably:  Capt.  Lieut.  Graham,  and 
Lieut.  James  Mcintosh  of  the  42d,  are  Killed,  and  Capt.  Graham  Wounded. 

Of  the  Royal  Amer'n  Regt,  Lieut.  Dow,  who  acted  as  A.  D.  Q.  M.  G.  is 
shot  through  the  Body. 

Of  the  77th,  Lieut.  Donald  Campbell,  and  Mr.  Peebles,  a  Volunteer,  are 
Wounded. 

Our  Loss  in  Men,  Including  Rangers,  and  Drivers,  Exceeds  Sixty,  Ki'.ed 
or  Wounded. 

The  Action  has  Lasted  from  One  O'Clock  'till  Night,  And  We  Expect  to 
Begin  again  at  Day  Break.  Whatever  Our  Fate  may  be,  I  thought  it  neces- 
sary to  Give  Your  Excellency  this  Early  Information,  that  You  may,  at  all 
Events,  take  such  Measures  as  You  will  think  proper  with  the  Provinces, 
for  their  own  Safety,  and  the  Effectual  Relief  of  Fort  Pitt,  as  in  Case  of 
Another  Engagement  I  Fear  Insurmountable  Difficulties  in  protecting  and 
Transporting  our  Provisions,  being  already  so  much  Weakened  by  the 
Losses  of  this  Day,  in  Men  and  Horses ;  besides  the  Additional  Necessity 
of  Carrying  the  Wounded,  Whose  Situation  is  truly  Deplorable. 

I  Cannot  Sufficiently  Acknowledge  the  Constant  Assistance  I  have  Re- 
ceived from  Major  Campbell,  during  this  long  Action,  Nor  Express  my 
Admiration  of  the  Cool  and  Steady  Behavior  of  the  Troops,  Who  Did  not 
Fire  a  Shot,  without  Orders,  and  Drove  the  Enemy  from  their  Posts  with 
Fixed  Bayonets.  —  The  Conduct  of  the  Officers  is  much  above  my  Praises. 
,    •■  I  Have  the 

Honor  to  be,  with  great  Respect, 

Sir, 
-:;■;-  •    ■.  ,      .  .    .         ...      >  .  &ca. 

Henry  Bouquet. 

His  Excellency  Sir  Jeffrey  Amherst. 


U' 


!  Is: 


Vlile  beyond  this 
to  have  Marched 
jf  Several  Miles, 
k  this  Aflernoon, 
ed  our  Advanced 
it  Infantry  Corn- 
heir  Ambuscade, 
)  the  Attack,  and 


Sir; 


Camp  at  Bushy  Run,  6th  August,  1763. 


I  Had  the  Honor  to  Inform  Your  Excellency  in  my  letter  of  Yesterday, 
of  our  first  Engagement  with  the  Savages. 

We  Took  Post  last  Night  on  the  Hill,  where  Our  Convoy  Halted,  when 
the  Front  was  Attacked,  (a  commodious  piece  of  Ground,  and  Just  Spacious 
Enough  for  our  Purpose.)  There  We  Encircled  the  Whole,  and  Covered 
our  Wounded  with  the  Flour  Bags. 


1'"  ] 


[ 

1 
A 

1 
i 

i 

{ 


•« 


"•L»? 


600 


ArrENDlX  D. 


In  tho  Morning  Uio  Savages  Surrounded  our  Camp,  at  tho  Dintancc  of 
abuut  500  Yards,  and  by  Shouting  and  Yelping,  quite  Round  that  Exten- 
sive Circumference,  thought  to  have  Terrified  Us,  with  their  Numbers: 
They  Attacked  Us  Early,  and,  under  Favour  of  an  Incessant  Fire,  made 
Several  Bold  Efforts  to  Penetrate  our  Camp ;  And  tljo'  tliey  Failed  in  tlie 
Attempt,  our  Situation  was  not  the  Less  Perplexing,  having  FiX])erienced 
that  Brisk  Attacks  had  Little  Effect  upon  an  Enemy,  who  always  gave  Way 
when  Prossed,  &  Appeared  again  Immediately ;  Our  Troops  were  besides 
Extreme!}  Fatigued  with  tlie  Long  March,  and  as  long  Action  of  the  Pre- 
ceding Day,  and  Distressed  to  the  Last  Degree,  by  a  Total  Wont  of  Water, 
much  more  Intolerable  than  the  Enemy's  Fire. 

Tied  to  our  Convoy  We  could  not  Loso  Sight  of  it,  witliout  Exposing  it, 
and  our  Wounded,  to  Fall  a  prey  to  tlio  ages,  who  Pressed  upon  Us  on 
Every  Side ;  and  to  Move  it  was  Impracticable,  having  lost  many  horses, 
and  most  of  the  Drivers,  Stupified  by  Fear,  hid  themselves  in  the  Bushes, 
or  were  Incapable  of  Hearing  or  Obeying  Orders. 

The  Savages  growing  Every  Moment  more  Audacious,  it  was  thought 
proper  still  to  increase  their  Confidence  ;  by  that  means,  if  possible,  to  En- 
tice them  to  Come  Close  upon  Us,  or  to  Stand  heir  Ground  when  Attacked. 
With  this  View  two  Companies  of  Light  Infantry  were  Ordered  within  the 
Circle,  and  the  Troops  on  their  Right  and  Lefl  opened  their  Files,  and 
Filled  up  the  Space  that  it  might  seem  they  were  intended  to  Cover  the 
Retreat ;  The  Third  Light  Infantry  Company,  and  the  Grenadiers  of  the 
42d,  were  Ordered  to  Support  the  two  First  Companys.  This  Munoeuvrc 
Succeeded  to  Our  Wish,  for  the  Few  Troops  who  Took  possession  of  the 
Ground  lately  Occupied  by  tho  two  Light  Infantry  Companys  being 
Brought  in  Nearer  to  the  Centre  of  the  Circle,  the  Barbarians,  mistakin<r 
these  Motions  for  a  Retreat,  Hurried  Headlong  on,  and  Advancing  upon 
Us,  with  the  most  Daring  Intrepidity,  Galled  us  Excessively  with  their 
Heavy  Fire  ;  But  at  the  very  moment,  that  Certain  of  Success,  they  thought 
themselves  Masters  of  the  Camp,  Major  Campbell,  at  the  Head  of  the  two 
First  Companys,  Sallied  out  from  a  part  of  the  Hill  they  Could  not  Observe, 
and  Fell  upon  their  Right  Flank ;  They  Resolutely  Returned  the  Fire,  but 
could  not  Stand  the  Irresistible  Shock  of  our  Men,  Who,  Rushing  in  among 
them.  Killed  many  of  tliem,  and  Put  the  Rest  to  Flight  The  Orders  sent 
to  the  Other  Two  Companys  were  Delivered  so  timely  by  Captain  Basset, 
and  Executed  witli  such  Celerity  and  Spirit,  that  the  Routed  Savages,  who 
happened  to  Run  that  Moment  before  their  Front,  Received  their  Full  Fire, 
when  Uncovered  by  the  Trees :  The  Four  Companys  Did  not  give  them 
time  to  Load  a  Second  time,  nor  Even  to  Look  behind  them,  but  Pursued 
them  'till  they  were  Totally  Dispersed.  The  Lefl  of  the  Savages,  which 
had  not  been  Attacked,  were  kept  in  Awe  by  the  Remains  of  our  Troops, 
Posted  on  the  Brow  of  the  Hill,  for  that  Purpose  ;  Nor  Durst  they  Attempt 
to  Support,  or  Assist  their  Right,  but  being  Witness  to  their  Defeat,  fol- 
lowed their  Example  and  Fled.     Our  Brave  Men  Disdained  so  much  to 


■iff^' 


APPENDIX  D. 


601 


Touch  tho  Dead  Body  of  a  Vanquishod  Enemy,  that  Scarce  a  Scalp  waa 
taken,  Except  by  tho  Rangers,  and  Pock  Horse  Drivers. 

Tlic  Woods  being  now  Cleared  and  tho  Pursuit  over,  the  Four  Compnnys 
took  possession  of  a  Hill  in  our  Front ;  and  aa  soon  as  Litters  could  bo 
made  for  the  Wounded,  and  the  Flour  and  Every  thing  Destroyed,  which, 
for  want  of  Horses,  could  not  be  Carried,  We  Marched  witliout  Moles- 
tation to  this  Camp.  After  tho  Severe  Correction  Wo  had  given  tho 
Savages  a  few  hours  before,  it  was  Natural  to  Suppose  We  should  Enjoy 
some  Rest ;  but  We  had  hardly  Fixed  our  Camp,  when  they  Fired  upon 
Us  again :  This  was  very  Provoking !  However,  the  Light  Infantry  Dis- 
persed them,  before  they  could  Receive  Orders  for  tliat  purpose.  —  I  Hope 
We  shall  be  no  more  Disturbed,  for,  if  We  have  another  Action,  We  shall 
hardly  bo  able  to  Carry  our  Wounded. 

The  Behavior  of  the  Troops,  on  this  Occasion,  Speaks  for  itself  so 
Strongly,  that  for  me  to  Attempt  their  Eulogium,  would  but  Detract  from 
their  merit  ^ 

I  Have  the  Honor  to  be,  most  Respectfully, 

Sir, 
'  &ca. 

<  Henrt  Bocqpkt. 


'\\\ 


m 


P.  S.    I  Have  tho  Honor  to  Enclose  the  Return  of  tUo  Killed,  WoudJ  v 
and  Missing  in  the  two  Engagements. 

H.  ij. 


His  Excellency  Sir  Jeffret  Amherst. 

76 


YY 


'■:,*  ■" 
.  '■  .-V 

,  :  ..1  ■ . 


I  Mil! 


II. 


jS 


n 


'I 


4 


F',.: 


-H  li 


c 

i      « 

s 

1          !        «    ' 

1     1 

'       !      .'J  . 

^    'i 

r 

i  ■  < 

II 

1i 

1:1 


•i  »«6'f 


APPENDIX    E. 


-t;?i  ■fesit  •s8l>t^B^-?J      THE  PAXTON  RIOTS. 


i\ 


1.    Evidence  against  the  Indians  of  Conestoqa.    (p.  413.) 


Abraham  Newcomer,  a  Mennonist,  by  trade  a  Gunsmith,  upon  his  affirma- 
tion, declared  that  several  times,  witliin  these  few  years,  Bill  Soc  and 
Indian  John,  two  of  the  Conestogue  Indians,  threatened  to  scalp  him  for 
refusing  to  mend  their  tomahawks,  and  swore  they  would  as  soon  scalp 
him  as  they  would  a  dog.  A  few  days  before  Bill  Soc  was  killed,  he 
brought  a  tomahawk  to  be  steeled.  Bill  said,  "  If  you  will  not,  I'll  have  it 
mended  to  your  sorrow,"  from  which  expression  I  apprehended  danger. 

Mrs.  Thompson,  of  the  borough  of  Lancaster,  personally  appeared  be- 
fore the  Chief  Burgess,  and  upon  her  solemn  oath,  on  the  Holy  Evangelists, 
said  that  in  the  summer  of  1761,  Bill  Soc  came  to  her  apurtment,  and  threat- 
ened her  life,  saying,  "  I  kill  you,  all  Lancaster  can't  catch  me,"  which  filled 
me  with  terror ;  and  this  lady  further  said,  Bill  Soc  added,  "  Lancaster  is 
mine,  and  I  will  have  it  yet" 

Colonel  John  Hambright,  gentleman,  an  eminent  Brewer  of  the  Borough 
of  Lancaster,  personally  appeared  before  Robert  Thompson,  Esq.,  a  justice 
for  the  county  of  Lancaster,  and  made  oath  on  the  Holy  Evangelists,  that, 
in  August,  1757,  he,  an  officer,  was  sent  for  provision  from  Fort  Augusta  to 
Fort  Hunter,  that  on  his  way  he  rested  at  M'Kee's  old  place ;  a  Sentinel  was 
stationed  behind  a  tree,  to  prevent  surprise.  The  Sentry  gave  notice  In- 
dians were  near;  the  deponent  crawled  up  the  bank  and  discovered  two 
Indians ;  one  wos  Bill  Soc,  lately  killed  at  Lancaster.  He  called  Bill  Soc 
to  come  to  him,  but  the  Indians  ran  offi  When  the  deponent  came  to  Fort 
Hunter,  he  learnt  that  an  old  man  had  been  killed  the  day  before  ;  Bill  Soc 
and  his  companion  were  believed  to  be  the  perpetrators  of  the  murder.  He, 
the  deponent,  had  frequently  seen  Bill  Soc  and  some  of  the  Conestoguo 


APPENDIX  B. 


603 


Indians  at  Fort  Augusta,  trading  with  the  Indians,  but,  after  the  murder  of 
the  old  man,  Bill  Soc  did  not  appear  at  tliat  Garrison. 

John  Hambrioht. 
Sworn  and  Subscribed  the  28th  bf  Feb.,  1764,  before  me, 

Robert  Thompson,  Justice. 

Charles  Cunningham,  of  the  county  of  Lancaster,  personally  appeared 
before  me,  Thomas  Foster,  Esq.,  one  of  tlie  Magistrates  for  said  county,  and 
being  qualified  according  to  law,  doth  depose  and  say,  that  he,  the  deponent, 
heard  Joshua  James,  an  Indian,  say,  that  he  never  killed  a  white  man  in  his 
life,  but  six  dutchmen  that  he  killed  in  the  Minisinks. 

Charles  CnNNiNOHAH. 
^  Sworn  to,  and  Subscribed  before  Thomas  Foster,  Justice. 

Alexander  Stephen,  of  the  county  of  Lancaster,  personally  appeared 
before  Thomas  Foster,  Esq.,  one  of  the  Magistrates,  and  being  duly 
qualified  according  to  law,  doth  say,  that  Connayak  Sally,  an  Indian 
woman,  told  him  that  the  Conestogue  Indians  had  killed  Jegrea,  an  Indian,  • 
because  he  would  not  join  the  Conestogue  Indians  in  destroying  the  Eng- 
lish. James  Cotter  told  the  deponent  that  he  was  one  of  the  three  that 
killed  old  William  Hamilton,  on  Sherman's  Creek,  and  also  another  man, 
with  seven  of  his  family.  James  Cotter  demanded  of  the  deponent  a  canoe, 
which  the  murderers  had  left,  as  Cotter  told  him  when  the  murder  was 
committed. 

Alexander  Stephen. 

Thomas  Foster,  Justice. 

JVote, — Jegrea  was  a  Warrior  Chief,  friendly  to  the  Whites,  and  he 
threatened  the  Conestogue  Indians  with  his  vengeance,  if  they  harmed  tho 
English.    Cotter  was  one  of  the  Indiant  ^  killed  in  Lancaster  county,  in  1763. 

Anne  Mary  Le  Roy,  of  Lancaster,  appeared  before  the  Chief  Burgess, 
and  being  sworn  on  the  Holy  Evangelists  of  Almighty  God,  did  depose  and 
say,  that  in  the  year  1755,  when  her  Father,  John  Jacob  Le  Roy,  and  many 
others,  were  murdered  by  the  Indians,  at  Mahoney,  she,  her  brother,  and 
some  others  were  made  prisoners,  and  taken  to  Kittanning ;  that  stranger 
Indians  visited  tliem ;  the  French  told  them  they  were  Conestogue  Indians, 
and  that  Isaac  was  the  only  Indian  true  to  their  interest ;  and  that  the  Cones- 
togue Indians,  with  the  exception  of  Isaac,  were  ready  to  lift  the  hatchet 
when  ordered  by  the  French.  She  asked  Bill  Soc's  mother  whether  she  had 
ever  been  at  Kittanning  ?  she  said  "  no,  but  her  son.  Bill  Soc,  had  been 
there  often ;  that  he  was  good  for  nothing." 

Mart  Le  Rot. 


I'liii' 


i  smji.' 


I  !  '■ 
\  i 


1  -■!  r  ■-■ 


I'V 

it :!' 


■}      11 


111  il 


2.    Proceedings  of  the  Rioters.    (Chap.  XXIV.  XXV.) 

Donnaifinn  nf  Voliv  Tlrinnlltr    Iroonor  Af  T.nnpnafnr  Tnil        tr%-  A1A  \ 

This  deposition  ia  imperfect,  a  part  of  the  manuscript  having  been 


■f.'->; 


.If  '  ••'■•likr  '■•    I     , 

""■  ■  ■;  vyj'f  I  •'.■. 


,    H 


I'* 


I  "I 


'  >' 


« 


i 


^^■^ 

^^^^^B' 

HM 

• 

1 

■«r 


^' 


604 


APPENDIX  E. 


''■m: 


defaced  or  torn  away.  The  original,  in  the  handwriting  of  Edward  Sliip- 
pen,  the  chief  magistrate  of  Lancaster,  was  a  few  years  since  in  the  posses- 
sion of  Redmond  Conyngham,  Esq. 

The  breaking  open  the  door  alarmed  me ;  armed  men  broke  in ;  they 
demanded  the  strange  Indian  to  be  given  up ;  they  ran  by  me ;  the  Indians 
guessed  their  intention ;  they  seized  billets  of  wood  from  the  pile ;  but  the 
three  most  active  were  shot ;  others  came  tc  their  assistance ;  I  was  stupi- 
iied ;  before  I  could  shake  oif  my  surprise,  the  Indians  were  killed  and 
then:  murderers  away. 

Q.  You  say,  "  Indians  armed  themselves  with  wood ; "  did  those  Indians 
attack  the  rioters  ? 

-'}.  They  did.  If  they  had  not  been  shot,  they  would  have  killed  the 
men  who  entered,  for  they  were  the  strongest. 

Q.    Could  the  murder  have  been  prevented  by  you  ? 

.4.    No :  I  nor  no  person  here  could  have  p.'evented  it. 

Q.    What  number  were  the  rioters  ? 

.4.    I  should  say  fifty.  .i.a*-  ■  .„  •'    ..i:  ,■,.■■ 

Q.    Did  you  know  any  of  them  ?      ^,,    ,,?      ., 

.4.    No ;  they  were  strangers. 

Q.    Do  you  now  know  who  was  in  command  ? 

.4.    I  have  been  told,  Lazarus  Stewart  of  Donegal. 

Q.  If  the  Indians  had  not  attempted  resistance,  would  the  men  have 
fled  ?  (fired  ?) 

Jl.    I  couldn't  tell ;  I  do  not  know. 

Q.  Do  you  think  or  believe  that  the  rioters  came  with  the  intent  to 
mwder  ? 

A,  I  heard  tliem  say,  when  they  broke  in,  they  wanted  a  strange 
Indie  n. 

Q.    Was  their  object  to  murder  him  ? 

A.  From  what  I  have  heard  since,  I  think  they  meant  to  carry  him  off; 
that  is  my  belief. 

Q.    What  was  their  purpose  ? 
I  do  not  know. 

Were  tlie  Indians  killed  all  friends  of  this  province  ? 
I  have  been  told  they  were  not    I  cannot  tell  oC  myself;  I  do  not 


■y^  r 


■li 


■.'.W«'.B'- 


v.iv.)  -^^   "iJi?*V,MKi;A   •>■/ 


A. 

A. 

know, 


T)onOiiy  was  suspected  of  a  secret  inclination  in  favor  of  the  rioters.  In 
private  conversation  he  endeavored  to  place  their  cor  duct  in  as  favorable  a 
light  as  possible,  and  indeed  such  an  intention  is  apparent  in  the  above 
deposition. 


Letter  from  Edward  Shippen  to  Governor  Hamilton,  (p.  420.) 

Lancaster, 


Honoured  Sir : 


-,  1764. 


.    .v«f."/        1  furnish  you  with  a  full  detail  of  all  the  particulars  that  could  be  gaLh- 
v?^*/'  '  ^^"^^  °f  ^®  unhappy  transactions  of  the  fourteenth  and  twenty-seventh  of 


V 


'*. 


of  Edward  Sbip- 
nce  in  the  posses- 

n  broke  in;  they 
r  me ;  the  Indians 
the  pile ;  but  the 
nee ;  I  was  Btupi- 
i  were  killed  and 

did  those  Indians 

d  have  killed  the 


uld  the  men  have 

with  the  intent  to 
wanted  a  strange 

;t  to  carry  him  off; 

■  'I.  '  *'■  ■ 

e? 

C  myself;  I  do  not 

of  the  rioters.  In 
:t  in  as  favorable  a 
went  in  the  above 


.420.) 
ter, 


-.  1764. 


knt  rnnld    hn    rrnth. 

..-. g 

twenty-seventh  of 


^*!., 


APPENDIX  E. 


605 


December  last,  as  painful  for  you  to  read  as  me  to  write .  The  Depositions 
can  only  state  the  fact  that  the  Indians  were  killed.  Be  assured  the  Borough 
Authorities,  when  they  placed  the  Indians  in  the  Workhouse,  thought  it  a 
place  of  security.  I  am  sorry  the  Indians  were  not  removed  to  Philadelphia, 
as  recommended  by  us.  It  is  too  late  to  remedy.  It  is  much  to  be  regretted 
that  there  are  evil-minded  persons  among  us,  who  are  trying  to  corrupt  the 
minds  of  the  people  by  idle  tales  and  horrible  butcheries  —  are  injuring  the 
character  of  many  of  our  most  respectable  people.  That  printers  should 
have  lent  their  aid  astonishes  me  when  they  are  employed  by  the  Assembly 
to  print  their  laws.  I  can  see  no  good  in  meeting  their  falsehoods  by  coun- 
ter statements. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Elder  and  Mr.  Harris  are  determined  to  rely  upon  the 
reputation  they  have  so  well  established. 

For  myself,  I  can  only  say  that,  possessing  your  confidence,  and  that  of 
the  Proprietaries,  with  a  quiet  conscience,  I  regard  not  the  malignant 
pens  of  secret  assailants — men  who  had  not  the  courage  to  affix  their 
names.  Is  it  not  strange  that  a  too  ready  belief  was  at  first  given  to  tlie 
slanderous  epistles  ?  Resting  on  the  favor  I  have  enjoyed  of  the  Govern- 
ment, on  the  confidence  reposed  in  me,  by  you  and  the  Proprietaries ;  by 
the  esteem  of  my  fellow-men  in  Lancaster,  I  silently  remain  passive. 

Yours  aflfectionately, 
,,;       ,4i^,:i:  Edward  Shifpeit. 

Kxtract  from  a  letter  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Elder  to  Governor  Penn,  Decem- 
ber 27, 1763.    (p.  417,  etc.) 

The  storm  which  had  been  so  long  gathering,  has  at  length  exploded. 
Had  Government  removed  the  Indians  from  Conestoga,  which  had  frequently 
been  urged,  without  success,  tins  painful  catastrophe  might  have  been 
avoided.  What  could  I  do  with  men  heated  to  madness.  All  tliat  I  could 
do,  was  done ;  I  expostulated ;  but  life  and  reason  were  set  at  defiance. 
And  yet  the  men,  in  private  life,  are  virtuous  and  respectable ;  not  cruel, 
but  mild  and  merciful. 

The  time  will  arrive  when  each  palliating  circumstance  will  be  calmly 
weighed.  This  deed,  magnified  into  the  blackest  of  crimes,  shall  be  con- 
sidered one  of  those  youthful  ebullitions  of  wrath  caused  by  momentary 
excitement,  to  which  human  infirmity  is  subjected. 

Extract  from  "  The  Paxtoniade,"  a  poem  in  imitation  of  Hudibras,  pub- 
lished at  Pliiladelphia,  17G4,  by  a  partisan  of  the  Quaker  faction. 

O'Hara  mounted  on  his  Steed,  "'  ■     ,  ; 
^          (Descendant  of  thot  self-same  Ass,  ■;? '' 

That  bore  his  Grandsire  Hudibras,)  -'  •  >'  " 

And  from  that  same  exalted  Station,  '  • 

Pronounced  an  hortory  Oration :  • ' 

YY* 


II 


,  5" 

ri 

Jl 

*»f 

*••' 

\    ^ 

i> 

<■ 

i    lip 

i 

JM 

1 

■J 

i 

• 

'J 

r 

ti 

r 

hi 


'J 


V 


606  i  APPENDIX  E. 

'    For  he  was  cunning  as  a  Fox,       "  '1 . '  *t 
^ ..  .  Had  read  o'er  Calvin  and  Dan  Nox  ; 

A  man  of  most  profound  Discerning, 

Well  versed  in  P n  Learning. 

So  after  hemming  thrice  to  clear 
His  Throat,  and  banish  thoughts  of  fear, 
And  of  the  mob  obtaining  Silence, 
He  thus  went  on  —  "  Dear  Sirs,  a  while  since 
Ye  know  as  how  the  Indian  Rabble, 
With  practices  unwarrantable. 
Did  come  upon  our  quiet  Borders, 
-     ' '   And  there  commit  most  desperate  murders ; 
Did  tomahawk,  butcher,  wound  and  cripple, 
V   •        With  cruel  Rage,  the  Lord's  own  People ; 
*i^   I  '.  Did  war  most  implacable  wage  '      - 

'  V       413'/  With  G(  d's  own  chosen  heritage ; 
1  .  '.   -  4  Did  from  our  Brethren  take  their  lives, 
>-.      9j>   And  kill  our  Children,  kine  and  wives.        r    " 
Now,  Sirs,  I  ween  it  is  but  right, 
'■'       That  we  upon  these  Canoanites, 

Without  delay,  should  Vengeance  take, 
s  <>-»-,    Both  for  our  own,  and  the  K — k's  sake ; 
Should  totally  destroy  the  heathen. 


I  S 


W- 


■^H       M 


>    "Z'^^-- 


i* 


-J 


And  never  till  we've  killed  'em  leave  'em;— 
Destroy  them  quite  frae  out  the  Land ; 
And  for  it  we  have  God's  Command. 
We  should  do  him  a  muckle  Pleasure, 
As  ye  in  your  Books  may  read  at  leisure." 
He  paused,  aa  Orators  are  used, 
And  from  his  pocket  quick  produced 
A  friendly  Vase  well  stor'd  and  fiU'd 
With  good  old  wiskey  twice  distill'd. 
And  having  refresh'd  his  inward  man, 
Went  on  with  his  harrangue  again. 
"  Is't  not,  my  Brethren,  a  pretty  Story 
That  we  who  are  the  Land's  chief  Glory, 
Who  are  i'  the  number  of  God's  elected, 
Should  slighted  thus  be  and  neglected  ? 
That  we,  who're  the  only  Gospel  Church, 
Should  thus  be  left  here  in  the  lurch ; 
Whilst  our  most  antichristian  foes,  u, 

Whose  trade  is  war  and  hardy  blows, 
(At  least  while  some  of  the  same  Colour, 
^Vith  those  who've  caused  us  all  this  Dolor,) 
In  Matchcoats  warm  and  blankets  drest. 
Are  by  the  Q rs  much  caress'd,  % 


'^ 


ri*^- 


C*"'*' 


'V^^^ 


t 


m 


APPENDIX  E. 


607 


•i:;^   ..•„         And  live  in  peace  by  good  warm  fires,  ;/'/../-. 

S'  '    .  And  have  the  extent  of  tlieir  desires  ?  ;•:     .,    ,    , 

;-        i  Shall  we  put  by  such  treatment  base  ?  ,-i     t  j ,  ,v 

■  •  By  Nox,  we  wont! "  —  And  broke  his  Vase.  i-v-  ; 

"  Seeing  then  we've  such  good  cause  to  hate  'em,     ..  '   ,  ,?; 
■    '■        What  I  intend's  to  exterpate  'em ;  ;  :i.-^  ^  j,  „ .; 

.  '  ;,,;;■'         rpo  suffer  them  no  more  to  thrive, 
: '  ■     '^  '        And  leave  nor  Root  nor  Branch  alive ; 
^f  f    ij, ;         By^.  ^yould  we  madiy  leave  our  wives         ui .  •/     ,  ?-f    :  . 
''•  And  Children,  and  expose  our  lives  cjc.    ■■ '. 

•        ■  In  search  of  these  wh' infest  our  borders, 

And  perpetrate  such  cruel  murders ;       ;  •. 
•-   '■'''■'■         It  is  most  likely,  by  King  Harry,  ..    ,     ,- 

-f. .;    ;■  /,         That  we  should  in  the  end  miscarry.       '        ',».,■  .a..:  , 
•-   J-  I  deam  therefore  the  wisest  course  is,  .    ,  ,;  ,•   j^.     . 

].!f  t  >  -i-  That  those  who've  beasts  should  mount  their  horses,         ^ 

And  those  who've  none  should  march  on  foot, 
' '  ■  With  as  r.uch  quickness  as  will  suit,  ,;       .  ,  ^ 

To  where  those  heathen,  nothing  fearful,      y .  u    v;j ,   si ,  :;, 
.  ' -•;         That  we  will  on  their  front  and  rear  fall,      ,eiji  - ■        .  - ..v  ■ 
^■'  \     '^        Enjoy  Sweet  Otium  in  their  Cotts, 
And  dwell  securely  in  their  Hutts. 
And  as  they've  nothing  to  defend  them, 
"        •  We'll  quickly  to  their  own  place  send  them ! " 


III 


The  following  letter  from  Rev.  Jolm  Elder  to  Colonel  Shippen,  will  serve 
to  cxiiibit  the  state  of  feeling  among  the  frontier  inhabitants,  (pp.  426-438.) 


,;  "  ,  ■  T,  ■       ';':.;•■;!  Paxton,  Feb.  1, 1764. 

Dear  Sir:  ' '  '     "'■'  " 

Since  I  sealed  the  Governor's  Letter,  which  you'll  please  to  deliver  to 
him,  I  suspect,  from  the  frequent  meetings  I  hear  the  people  have  had  in 
diverse  parts  of  the  Frontier  Counties,  that  an  Expedition  is  immediately 
designed  against  the  Indians  at  Philadelphia.  It's  well  known  that  I  have 
always  used  my  utmost  ondeavors  to  discourage  these  proceedings ;  but  to 
little  purpose:  the  minds  of  the  Inhabitants  are  so  exaspercti  t  against  a 
particular  set  of  men,  deeply  concerned  in  the  government,  for  tiie  singular 
regards  they  have  always  shown  to  savages,  and  the  heavy  burden  by  their 
means  laid  on  the  province  in  maintaining  an  expensive  Trade  and  holding 
Treaties  from  time  to  time  with  the  savages,  without  any  prospect  of  advan- 
tage either  to  his  Majesty  01  t-^tV'  nrovince,  how  beneficial  soever  it  may 
have  been  to  individuals,  that  it's  in  vain,  nay  even  nsafe  for  any  one  to 
oppose  their  n^easures ;  for  were  Col.  Shippen  here,  tl  ii  gentleman  highly 
esteemed  by  tho  Frontier  inhabitants,  he  would  soon  find  it  useless,  if  not 
•i-ngerous  to  act  in  opposition  to  an  enraged  multitude.  At  first  there  were 
but,  as  I  thirik,  few  concerned  in  tliese  riots,  &  nothing  intended  by  some 


,„ii« 


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■V 


m 

'  •  i}" 


■Ill 


a 


h  'i 


G08 


APPENDIX   E. 


but  to  eaae  the  ):vovince  of  part  of  its  burden,  and  by  others,  who  had  suf- 
fered greatly  in  the  lato  war,  the  gratifying  a  spirit  of  Revenge,  yet  the 
manner  of  the  Quakers  resenting  these  things  has  been,  I  think,  very  inju- 
rious and  impolitick.  The  Presbyterians,  who  are  the  most  numerous,  I  im- 
i  rjine,  of  any  denomination  in  the  province,  are  enrage il  :a  Uicir  h(ih\»  charged 
in  bulk  with  'hese  facts,  under  tlie  name  of  P,  >tch  Inah,  ant]  liher  wl- 
natured  titles,  rtid  that  the  killing  the  Conestog  o  IiHuansi  is  co^aparel  t,i 
the  Ir'sJ)  Mass:i<;res,  and  reckoned  the  most  bavbaroui  of  either,  so  ih:  \ 
things  are  grown  to  that  pitch  now  that  ;!  e  couu'r  r  e.  ecis  i'.)tc:,  iiea  lu,: 
no  Indian  Treaties  shall  he  held,  orsavi^cs  mamtiiined  at  th'-  expenLsj  :;' 
the  province,  unltig  his  Majesty's:  pleasui>i  on  thecv'  heads  is  well  known; 
for  I  understood  lo  sny  great  i  u*  ^faction  tl.a";  amiri  our  great  confutionK, 
tliere  are  none,  evrn  of  the  most  ; 'urm  and  furious  tempers,  but  what  r.rn 
warmly  attachejl  to  his  Majesty,  and  woulf'  cJ\t'erfi?Uy  risk  their  l'.v.fis  i  pic- 
motp  his  service.  Wb:U  the  numb  ;,  ?  arc  of  tli  )Re  going  on  the  above  mcn- 
tionetl  E  pediticn,  I  can't  possibly  learn,  ^i  Vik  informed  tLev  't^  collecting 
3  1:  dl  part-  of  the  province ;  however,  thin  muoh  may  ha  def.t-;<.  sd  on,  tl.at 
Uitw  have  the  good  winhcs  of  the  country  in  genoral,  anJ  that  there  are  tew 
o'il  n  Tf  aw  nnA>  either  one  way  or  other  embarked  in  the  affair,  tho'  some 
partJciUar  p'TSoua,  I'm  informed,  are  grossly  misrepresented  ini  Philadelphia; 
t  vt  1  uj  nftiglibor,  Mr.  Harris,  it's  said,  is  looked  on  there  as  the  chief  pro- 
ii.oiu  of  tlieao  riots,  yet  it's  entirely  false;  lie  had  aided  as  much  in  oppo- 
Kirjon  to  tliese  measures  as  he  could  witli  any  >mfety  in  his  situation.  Re- 
ports, however  gromdless,  are  spread  by  do'^igning  men  on  purpose  to 
inflame  matters,  and  enrage  the  parties  aguinjt  each  other,  and  various 
metliods  used  to  accomplish  their  pernicious  ends.  As  I  am  deeply  con- 
cerned for  the  welfare  of  my  country,  I  would  do  every  thing  in  my  power 
to  promote  its  interests.  I  thought  proper  to  givo  you  these  few  hints; 
you'll  pleaee  to  make  what  use  you  think  proper  of  them.  I  would  heartily 
wish  that  some  effectual  measures  might  be  t^kon  to  heal  these  growing 
evils,  and  this  I  judge  may  be  yet  done,  and  Col.  Armstrong,  who  is  now  in 
town,  may  be  usefully  employed  for  this  purpose. 

-   ■■  ■    :i^  '/:vtv''''>tt-;^^  Sir,  ,.,  .,-,, 

;■'•.  :. ,   '.    I--;  sf^.r,  ■<%,-.  ':  i       JoHK  Elder. 

Extiacts  from  a  Quaker  letter  on  the  Paxton  riots,    (p.  436.)      '  *''     ' ' 

This  letter  is  written  witli  so  much  fidelity,  and  in  so  impartial '.:  spirit, 
that  it  tnust  always  remain  one  of  the  best  authorities  in  reference  to  thoHC 
eingulAr  events.  Although  in  general  very  accurate,  its  testimony  has  in  a 
few  instances  been  set  aside  in  favor  of  tho  more  direct  evidence  of  eye- 
witnesses. It  was  published  by  Hazard  in  the  twiflh  volume  of  his  Pennsyl- 
vania Register.  I  have,  however,  examined  t"  rJjinal,  which  is  still  pre- 
served by  a  family  in  Philadelphia.  The  e  ?  here  given  form  but  a 
small  part  of  the  entire  letter.  '  i   ;-.;■;  :  -     ;,  ' 


APPENDIX  E. 


609 


Before  I  proceed  further  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  info-../  ih.ee  thftt  a  great 
number  of  tho  inhabitants  here  approved  of  killing  t>'  j  Indians,  and  declared 
that  they  would  not  offer  to  oppose  the  Paxtoneer?  unless  they  attacked  the 
citizens,  that  is  to  say,  themselves  —  for,  if  any  udgment  was  to  be  formed 
from  countenances  and  behavior,  those  who  dep  inded  upon  them  for  defence 
and  protection,  would  have  found  their  confid  jnce  shockingly  misplaced. 

The  number  of  persons  in  arms  that  uiuroing  was  about  six  hundred,  and 
as  it  was  expected  the  insurgents  would  attempt  to  cross  at  the  middle  or 
upper  ferr^',  orders  were  sent  to  bring  the  boats  to  this  side,  and  to  take 
away  the  ropes.  Couriers  were  now  seen  continually  coming  in,  their  horses 
all  of  a  foam,  and  people  running  with  the  greatest  eagerness  to  ask  them 
where  the  enemy  were,  and  what  were  their  numbers.  The  answers  to 
these  questions  were  various :  sometimes  they  were  at  a  distance,  then  near 
at  hand  —  sometimes  they  were  a  thousand  strong,  then  five  hundred,  then 
fifteen  hundred ;  in  short,  all  was  doubt  and  uncertainty. 

About  eleven  o'clock  it  was  recollected  the  boat  at  the  Sweed's  ford 
was  not  secured,  which,  in  the  present  case,  was  of  the  utmost  consequence, 
for,  OS  there  was  a  considerable  freshet  in  the  Schuylkill,  the  securing  that 
boat  would  oblige  them  to  march  some  distance  up  the  river,  and  thereby 
retard  the  execution  of  their  scheme  at  least  a  day  or  two  longer.  Several 
persons  therefore  set  off  immediately  to  get  it  performed ;  but  they  had  not 
been  gone  long,  before  there  was  a  general  uproar  —  They  are  coming ! 
they  are  coming !  Where  ?  where  ?  Down  Second  street !  down  Sec- 
ond street !  Such  of  tlie  company  as  had  grounded  then:  firelocks,  flew  to 
arms,  and  began  to  prime ;  the  artillerymen  threw  themselves  into  order,  and 
the  people  ran  to  get  out  of  the  way,  for  a  troop  of  armed  men,  on  horse- 
back, appeared  in  reality  coming  down  the  street,  and  one  of  the  artillery- 
men was  just  going  to  apply  the  fatal  match,  when  a  person,  perceiving  the 
mistake,  clapped  his  hat  upon  the  touch-hole  of  the  piece  he  was  going  to 
fire.  Dreadful  would  have  been  the  consequence,  had  the  cannon  dis- 
charge*' •  for  tho  men  that  appeared  proved  to  be  a  company  of  German 
butCi..  a  uMd  porters,  under  the  conunand  of  Captain  Hofiman.  They  had 
just  collected  themselves,  and  being  unsuspicious  of  danger,  had  neglected 
to  give  notice  of  their  coming ;  —  a  false  alai;m  was  now  called  out,  and  all 
became  qriiet  a|,-ain  in  a  few  minutes.  .  .  . 

The  weather  being  now  very  wet,  Capt  Francis,  Capt  Wood,  and  Capt. 
Mifflin,  drew  up  their  men  under  the  mark':  1  house,  which,  not  affording 
shelter  for  any  more,  they  occupied  Friends'  meeting-house,  and  Capt.  Jo- 
seph Wharton  marched  his  company  up  stairs,  into  the  monthly. meeting 
room,  as  I  have  been  told  —  the  rest  were  stationed  below.  It  hai^ncd  to 
be  the  day  appointed  lor  holding  of  Youths'  meeting,  but  never  8id  tlie 
0,nttkrr  youth  nscieir:  't  in  such  a  military  manner  —  never 'wa3  the  sound 
of  U't:  jfUin  iioari!  bctbre  witlnn  those  walls,  nor  ever  till  now  was  the  Ban- 
t  V  of  War  displayeO  ■  n  tliat  rostrum,  from  whence  the  art  has  been  so  zeal- 
ously declaimed  against.  Strange  rfiveree  of  times,  James  — .  Nothing  of 
any  consequence  passed  during  tb*    remainder  of  the  day,  except  that 


■-));■ 


'V. 


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610 


APPENDIX  E. 


Captain  Coultofl  came  into  town  at  the  head  of  a  troop,  which  he  had  just 
raised  in  his  own  neighborhood.  The  Captain  was  one  of  those  who  had  been 
marked  out  as  victims  by  these  devout  conquerors,  and  word  was  sent  to  him 
from  Lancaster  to  make  his  peace  with  Heaven,  fbr  that  he  had  but  about 
ten  days  to  live. 

In  the  evening  our  Negotiators  came  in  from  Germantown.  They  had 
conferred  with  thn  Chiefs  of  this  illustrious  — ,  and  have  prevailed  with 
them  to  suspend  all  hnntility  till  such  time  as  they  should  receive  an  answer 
to  their  petition  or  manifesto,  which  had  been  sent  down  the  day  before. 

•  •  •  •  ■ 

The  weather  now  clearing,  the  City  forces  drew  up  near  the  Court  House, 
where  a  speech  was  made  to  them,  informing  them  that  matters  had  been 
misrepresented, — that  the  Paxtoneers  were  a  set  of  very  worthy  men  (or 
something  to  that  purpose)  who  labored  under  great  distress,  —  that  Messrs. 
Smith,  &c.,  were  come  (by  their  own  authority)  as  representatives,  from  sev- 
eral counties,  to  lay  their  complaints  before  the  Legislature,  and  that  the 
reason  for  their  arming  themselves  was  for  fear  of  being  molested  or  abused. 
By  whom  ?  Why,  by  the  peaceable  citizer".  of  Philadelphia !  Ha !  ha!  ha ! 
(Who  «"oa  help  laughing?  The  harangne  concluded  with  thanks  for  the 
trouble  and  expense  they  had  been  at,  (about  nothing,)  and  qaoh  retured  to 
their  several  homes.  The  next  day,  when  all  was  quiet,  and  nobody 
dreamed  of  any  further  disturbance,  we  were  alarmed  again.  The  report 
now  was,  that  the  Paxtoneers  had  broke  the  Treaty,  and  were  just  entering 
the  city.  It  'a  incredible  to  think  with  what  alacrity  the  people  flew  to 
arms ;  in  one  <  quarter  of  an  hour  near  a  thousand  of  them  were  assembled, 
with  a  determination  to  bring  tlie  affair  to  a  conclusion  immediately,  and  not 
to  suffer  themselves  to  be  harassed  as  they  had  been  several  days  j>.  "t.  If 
the  whole  body  of  the  enemy  had  come  in,  as  was  expected,  the  engage- 
ment would  have  been  a  bloody  one,  for  the  citizem;  were  exasperated 
almost  to  madness ;  but  happily  those  that  appeared  did  not  exceed  thirty, 
(the  rest  having  gone  homewards,)  and  as  ;  aey  behaved  with  decency,  they 
were  suffered  to  pass  v/ithout  opposition.  Thus  the  storm  blew  over,  and 
the  Inhabitants  dispersed  themselves.  .  .  . 


The  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  usually  a  faithful  chronicler  of  the  events  of 
the  day,  preserves  a  discreet  silence  on  the  subject  of  the  Paxton  riots,  and 
contains  no  other  notice  of  them  than  the  following  condensed  statement :  — 


On  Saturday  last,  tlie  City  was  alarmed  w  th  the  News  of  great  Numbers 
of  M^ed  Men,  from  the  Frontiers,  being  on  ihe  several  Roads,  and  moving 
towards  Philadelphia.  As  their  designs  were  unknown,  and  there  were  va- 
r'vom  Repoits  concerning  them,  it  was  thought  prudent  to  put  the  City  in 
some  PQatitfer,of  Defence  against  any  Outrages  that  might  possibly  be 
intended.  The  Inhabitants  being  accordingly  called  upon  by  the  Governor, 
great  numbers  of  them  entered  into  an  Association,  and  took  Arms  for  the 
Support  of  Gayprnment,  and  Maintenance  of  good  Order.     «•>      =,«ff'  , 


APPENDIX   E. 


611 


Six  Companies  of  Foot,  one  of  Artillery,  and  two  Troops  of  Hone,  were 
formed,  and  paraded,  to  which,  it  ia  said,  some  Thousands,  who  did  not 
appear,  were  prepared  to  join  themselves,  in  case  any  attempt  should  be 
made  against  the  Town.  The  Barracks  also,  where  the  Indians  are  lodged, 
under  Protection  of  the  regular  Troops,  were  put  into  a  good  Posture  of 
Defence ;  several  Works  being  thrown  up  about  them,  and  eight  Pieces  of 
Caimon  planted  there. 

The  Insurgents,  it  seems,  intended  to  rendeisvous  at  Gcrmantown ;  but 
the  Precautions  taken  at  the  several  Ferries  over  Schuylkill  impeded  their 
Junction ;  and  those  who  assembled  there,  being  made  acquainted  with  the 
Fcrce  raised  to  oppose  them,  listened  to  the  reasonable  Discourses  and 
Advice  of  some  prudent  Persons,  who  voluntarily  went  out  to  meet  and 
admonish  them ;  and  of  some  Gentlemen  sent  by  Uie  Governor,  to  know  the 
Reasons  of  their  Insurrection ;  and  promised  to  return  peaceably  to  their 
Habitations,  leaving  only  two  of  their  Nui^'.ber  to  present  a  Petition  to  the 
Governor  and  Assembly;  on  which  the  Companies  raised  in  Town  were 
thanked  by  the  Governor  on  Tuesday  Evening,  and  dismissed,  and  the  City 
restored  to  its  former  Quiet 

But  on  Wednesday  Morning  there  was  a  fresh  Alarm,  occasioned  by  a 
false  Report,  that  Four  Hundred  of  the  same  People  were  on  their  March  to 
Attack  the  Town.  Immediately,  on  Beat  of  Drum,  a  much  greater  number 
of  the  Inhabitants,  with  the  utmost  Alacrity,  put  themselves  imder  Arms ; 
but  as  the  Truth  was  soon  known,  they  were  again  thanked  by  the  Gov- 
ernor, and  dismissed ;  the  Country  People  being  really  dispersed,  and  gone 
home  according  to  their  Promise.  —  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  JVo.  1833. 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter  of  Rev.  John  Ewing  to  Joseph  Reed, 
affords  a  striking  example  of  the  excitement  among  the  Presbyterians. 
(See  Life  and  Cor.  of  Joseph  Reed,  I.  34.) 

"  Feb.  — ,  1764. 

As  to  public  affairs,  our  Province  is  greatly  involved  in  intestine  feuds,  at 
a  time,  when  we  should  rather  unite,  one  and  all,  to  manage  the  affairs  of 
our  several  Governments,  witti  prudence  and  discretion.  A  few  designing 
men,  having  engrossed  too  much  power  into  their  hands,  ai-e  pushing  matters 
beyond  all  bounds.  There  are  twenty-two  Quakers  in  our  Assembly,  at  pres- 
ent, who,  although  they  won't  absolutely  refuse  to  grant  money  for  the  King's 
use,  yet  never  fail  to  contrive  matters  in  such  a  manner  as  to  afford  little  or 
no  assistance  to  the  poor,  distressed  Frontiers ;  while  our  public  money  ia 
lavishly  squandered  away  in  supporting  a  number  of  savages,  who  have  beei; 
murdering  and  scalping  us  for  many  years  past  This  has  so  enraged  Some 
desperate  young  men-,  who  had  lost  their  nearest  relations,  by  these  very 
Indians,  to  cut  off  about  twenty  Indians  that  lived  near  Lancaster,  who  had, 
during  the  war,  carried  on  a  constant  intercourse  with  our  othiBif  enemies ; 
and  they  came  down  to  Germantown  to  inquire  why  IndiaiiV,  known  to  be 
enemies,  were  supported,  even  in  luxury,  with  the  best  that  our  markets 
afforded  "'  f'    public  expense,  while  they  were  left  in  the  ritmost  distress  . 


-ISo 


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111- 


612 


APPENDIX  E. 


.?v 


on  the  Frontiers,  in  want  of  the  necessaries  of  life.  Ample  promises  were 
made  to  them  that  their  grievances  should  be  redressed,  upon  which  they  im- 
mediately (li«i)cr8ed  and  went  home.  These  persons  have  been  unjustly  rep- 
resented ifl  endeavoring  to  overturn  Government,  when  nothing  was  more  dis- 
tant from  *\'  ■  ni  ^  However  this  matter  may  b  ■  looked  upon  in  Britain, 
where  you  Ki,  .v  v>;  y  Utile  of  the  matter,  you  may  be  assured  that  ninety-nine 
inim  '.unfi"'  .  tJ^  :  Province  are  firmly  persuaded,  that  they  are  maintaining 
our  enemies,  while  our  friends  back  are  suffering  the  greatest  extremitirs, 
neglected ;  and  that  few,  but  Quakers,  tliink  that  the  Lancaster  Indians  have 
suifcred  any  tiling  but  their  just  deserts.  'Tis  not  a  little  surprising  to  us 
hero,  that  orders  should  be  sent  from  the  Crown,  to  apprehend  and  bring  to 
justice  those  persons  who  hnv  "  that  nest  of  enemies  that  lived  near 

Lancaster.  They  n*»\cr  were  subjcctin  to  lui.  Mojesty ;  were  a  free,  inde- 
pendent state,  retaining  all  the  powera  of  a  free  state ;  sat  in  all  our  Treaties 
witli  the  Indians,  aa  one  of  tlio  tribes  belonging  to  the  Six  Nations,  in  alli- 
ance with  us ;  they  entertained  the  French  and  Indian  spies  —  gave  intelli- 
gence to  them  of  the  defenceless  state  of  our  Province  —  furnished  them 
with  Gazette  every  week,  or  fortnight  —  gave  tliem  intelligence  of  all  the 
dispositions  of  the  Province  army  against  them  —  were  frequently  with  the 
French  and  Indians  at  their  forts  and  towns  —  supplied  them  with  warlike 
stores  — joined  with  the  strange  Indians  in  their  war-dances,  and  in  the  par- 
ties that  made  incursions  on  our  Frontiers  —  were  ready  to  take  up  the 
iiatchct  against  the  English  openly,  when  the  French  requested  it — actually 
murdered  and  scalped  some  of  the  Frontier  inhabitants  —  insolently  boasted 
of  tlie  murders  they  had  committed,  when  they  saw  ou'  'ood  was  cooled, 
aflcr  the  last  Treaty  at  Lancaster  —  confessed  that  they  had  been  at  war 
with  us,  and  would  soon  be  at  war  with  us  again,  (which  accordingly  hap- 
pened,) and  even  went  so  far  as  to  put  one  of  their  own  warriors,  Jogarie,  to 
dealli,  because  he  refused  to  go  to  war  with  them  against  the  English.  All 
these  things  were  known  through  the  Frontier  inhabitants,  and  are  since 
proved  upon  uath.  This  occasioned  them  to  be  cut  off  by  abor.t  forty  or  fiily 
persons,  collecte<'.  front  all  the  Frontier  counties,  though  they  are  called  by 
the  name  of  the  little  Township  of  Paxton,  where,  possibly,  the  smallest 
partn  »l:om  resi.^ed.  Ami  vhat  surpraes  us  more  than  all  the  accounts 
v/e  hav..  iVom  Lrgland,  is,  i,  ,t  our  Ass* mbly,  in  a  petition  they  have  drawn 
up,  to  the  King,  for  a  change  of  Government,  should  represent  this  Province 
in  a  state  nf  nnroar  and  riot,  and  when  not  a  man  in  it  has  once  resisted  a 
single  oi  icer  of  the  Gover^  iont,  nor  a  i.ngle  act  of  violence  committed, 
\m\vafi  you  call  the  LancoMor  afiair  such,  althouerh  it  w?h  no  more  than 
going  ta  war  with  that  tribe,  m  '1  ay  had  done  before  with  ethers,  without  a 


foriruU-  proclamj^tiou 
may  giiess  by  this  m 
yours,' &.CiJ^j.v<, 


v,ar  !. 
'.to 


^^ 


the  Government.    I  have  not  time,  as  you 
rite  more  at  this  time,  but  only  that  I  am 

*        John  Ewing. 


X 


APPENi    x:  E. 


613 


3.    Mehuriai.8  or  the  Paxton  Men.    (pp.  43(M43.) 


5.  To  tho  Honorable  John  Penn,  Esq.,  Governor  of  tlie  Province  of 
Pennsylvania,  and  of  tlio  Counties  of  New-Castle,  Kent,  and  Sussex,  upon 
Delaware ;  and  to  tlie  Representatives  of  the  Freemen  of  tlie  said  Province, 
in  General  Assembly  met 

We,  Matthew  Smith  and  James  Gibson,  in  Behalf  of  ourselves  and  his 
Majesty's  faithful  and  loyal  Subjects,  tlie  Inhabitants  of  the  Frontier  Coun- 
ties of  Lancaster,  York,  Cumberland,  Berks,  and  Northampton,  humbly  beg 
Leave  to  remonstrate  and  lay  before  you  tho  following  Grievances,  which 
we  submit  to  your  Wisdom  for  Redress. 

First.  We  apprehend  that,  as  Freemen  and  English  Subjects,  we  have  an 
indisputable  Title  to  the  some  Privilc  os  and  Immunities  witli  hin  Majesty's 
other  Subjects,  who  reside  in  the  interior  Counties  of  Philadelphia,  Chester, 
and  Backs,  and  therefore  ought  not  to  be  excluded  from  an  equal  Share 
with  them  in  the  very  important  Privilege  of  Legislation ;  —  nevertiieless, 
contrary  to  the  Proprietor's  Chm*  r,  and  the  acknowledged  Principles  of 
common  Justice  and  Equity,  oui  live  Counties  are  restrained  from  electing 
more  than  ten  Representatives,  viz.,  four  for  Lancaster,  two  for  York,  two 
for  Cumlicrland,  one  for  Berks,  and  one  for  Northampton,  while  the  three 
Countiew  and  City  of  Philadelphia,  Chester  and  Bucks  elect  Twenty-six. 
This  wc  humbly  conceive  is  oppressive,  unequal  and  unjust,  the  Cause 
of  many  cf  our  Grievances,  oud  an  Infringement  of  our  natural  Privileges 
of  Freedom  and  Equality ;  wherefore  we  humbly  pray  that  we  may  be 
no  \onfff!T  deprived  of  an  equal  Number  with  the  three  aforesaid  Counties 
to  repi'     lit  ufl  in  Assembly. 

SecoiuUy.  We  understand  that  a  Bill  is  now  before  the  House  of  As- 
sembly, wherein  it  is  provided,  that  such  Persons  &£  t^hall  be  charged  witli 
!-illing  any  Indians  in  Lancaster  County,  shall  not  be  tried  in  the  County 
where  the  Fact  was  committed,  but  in  the  Counties  of  Philadelphia, 
ChoHi'  ')r  Bucks.  This  is  manifestly  to  deprive  British  Subjects  of  their 
knowi  rivilcj.'cs,  to  cast  an  eternal  Reproach  upon  whole  Counties,  as  if 
they  were  unfit  to  serve  then:  Country  in  the  Quality  of  Jury-men,  and  to 
contradict  the  well  known  Laws  of  the  British  Nation,  in  a  Point  whereon 
Life,  Liberty,  and  Security  essentially  depend  ;  namely,  that  of  being  tried 
by  their  Equals,  in  the  Neighbourhood  where  their  own,  their  Acrusors,  and 
the  Witnesses  Character  and  Credit,  with  the  Circumstances  of  tlio  I  act, 
are  best  known,  and  instead  thereof  putting  their  Lives  in  th>:  Kami;  of 
Strangers,  who  may  as  justly  be  suspected  of  Partiality  to,  as  tiy  Fiontier 
Counties  can  be  of  Prejudices  against,  Indians  ;  and  this  too,  in  Favour  of 
Indians  only,  against  hia  Majesty's  faithful  and  loyal  Subjects :  Besides,  it 
is  well  known,  tliat  the  ]  sign  of  it  is  to  comprehend  a  Fact  committed 
before  such  a  Law  was  tliought  of.  And  if  such  Practices  were  tolerated, 
no  Man  could  be  secure  in  his  most  invaluable  Interest.  —  We  are  also 
informed,  to  our  great  Surprise,  that  this  Bill  has  actually  received  the  " 

ZZ 


i*' 


■vi  i 


614 


APPENDIX  E. 


tMfii 


*-,«^ 


■<?? 


Assent  of  a  Mnjority  of  tlic  House ;  which  wo  arc  r,.  i  uiaded  could  not 
have  boon  the  Coho,  had  our  Frontier  Counties  been  equally  roproaontcd  in 
Assembly. — However,  wo  hope  that  the  Legislature  of  this  Pnvinco  will 
never  enact  a  Law  of  so  dangerous  a  Tendency,  or  take  away  from  his 
Majesty's  good  Hubjects  a  Privilege  so  long  esteemed  sacred  by  Eng- 
lishmen. 

Thirdly.  During  the  lato  and  present  Indian  War,  the  Frontiers  of  this 
Province  have  been  repeatedly  attacked  and  mvaged  by  skulking  Parties 
of  the  Indians,  who  have,  with  tho  most  Savage  Cruelty,  murdered  Men, 
Women,  and  Children,  without  Distinction,  and  have  reduced  near  a 
Thousand  Families  to  the  most  extreme  Distress.  —  It  grieves  us  to  tlie 
very  Heart  to  see  such  of  our  Frontier  Inhabitants  as  have  escaped  Savage 
Fury,  with  tho  Boss  of  their  Parents,  tlieir  Children,  their  Wives  or  Rela- 
tives, left  Destitute  by  the  Public,  and  exposed  to  the  most  cruel  Poverty 
and  Wretchedness,  while  upwards  of  an  Hundred  and  Twenty  of  these 
Savages,  who  are,  with  great  Reason,  suspected  of  being  guilty  of  these 
horrid  Barbarities,  under  tho  Mask  of  Friendship,  have  procured  tliem- 
selves  to  be  taken  under  the  Protection  of  the  Government,  with  a  View  to 
elude  tlic  Fury  of  tlie  brave  Relatives  of  the  Murdered,  and  are  now  main- 
tained at  tlie  public  Expence.  —  Some  of  these  Indians,  now  in  the  Barracks 
of  Philadelphia,  are  confessedly  a  Part  of  the  Wyalusing  Indians,  which 
Tribe  is  now  at  War  with  us ;  and  the  others  are  the  Moravian  Indians, 
who,  living  with  us,  under  the  Cloak  of  Friendship,  carried  on  a  Correspond- 
ence witli  our  known  Enemies  on  tho  Great  Island.  —  We  cannot  but 
obscr\-c,  with  Sorrow  and  Indignation,  that  some  Persons  in  this  Province 
are  at  Pains  to  extenuate  tho  barbarous  Cruelties  practised  by  these  Sav- 
ages on  our  murdered  Brethren  and  Relatives,  which  are  shocking  to  human 
Nature,  and  must  pierce  every  Heart,  but  that  of  the  hardened  Perpe- 
trators or  tlieir  Abettors.  Nor  is  it  less  distressing  to  hear  Others  pleading, 
that  although  tho  Wyalusing  Tribe  is  at  War  with  us,  yet  that  Part  of  it 
which  is  under  the  Protection  of  the  Government,  may  be  friendly  to  the 
English,  and  innocent :  —  In  what  Nation  under  tlie  Sun  was  it  ever  the 
Custom,  that  when  a  neighbouring  Nation  took  up  Arms,  not  an  Individual 
should  bo  touched,  but  only  the  Persons  tliat  offered  Hostilities  ?  —  Who 
ever  proclaimed  War  with  a  Part  of  a  Nation  and  not  with  the  whole  ?  — 
Had  tliese  Indians  disapproved  of  the  Perfidy  of  their  Tribe,  and  been 
willing  to  cultivate  and  preserve  Friendship  with  us,  why  did  they  not  give 
Notice  of  the  War  before  it  happened,  as  it  is  known  to  be  the  Result  of 
long  Deliberations,  and  a  preconcerted  Combination  among  them  ?  —  Why 
did.tfiey  not  leave  their  Tribe  immediately,  and  come  among  us,  before 
th«ie  wiB  Ground  to  suspect  them,  or  War  was  actually  waged  with  their 
TfjfleP'-^No,  they  stayed  amongst  them,  were  privy  to  their  Murders  and 
Ra%»igdB^'«9til  Hve  had  .destroyed  tlieir  Provisions,  and  when  they  could  no 
longer  suhsiaf  at  Home,  tliey  come  not  as  Deserters,  but  as  Friends,  to  be 
maintained  through  the  Winter,  that  tliey  may  be  able  to  scalp  and  butcher 
.^*' us  in  the  Spring. 


APPENDIX  E. 


615 


And  ns  to  tlio  Moravian  Imliuiw,  there  arc  strong  Grounds  at  least  to 
Buspcct  their  Friondsiiip,  as  it  is  known  timt  they  carried  on  a  Correspond- 
ence with  our  Enemies  on  the  Great  Island.  —  We  killed  three  Indiaru 
going  from  Bethlehem  to  the  Great  Island  with  Blankets,  Ammunition,  and 
Provisions,  which  is  an  undeniable  Proof  that  tlio  Moravian  Indian.^  were  in 
Confederacy  with  our  open  Enemies.  And  wo  cannot  but  be  filled  witli 
Indignation  to  hear  this  Action  of  ours  painted  in  the  most  odious  and 
detestable  Colours,  as  if  we  had  inhumanly  murdered  our  Guides,  who  pro- 
served  U9  from  perishing  in  the  Woods  ;  when  wo  only  killed  three  of  our 
known  Enemies,  who  attempted  to  shoot  us  when  we  surprised  them.  — 
And,  besides  all  this,  we  understand  that  one  of  tliese  very  Indians  is 
proved,  by  the  Oath  of  Stinton's  Widow,  to  bo  the  very  Person  that  mur- 
dered her  Ilnnband.  —  IIow  then  comes  it  to  pass,  that  he  alone,  of  all  the 
Moravian  Indians,  should  join  the  Enemy  to  murder  that  family  ?  —  Or  can 
it  be  supposed  that  any  Enemy  Indians,  contrary  to  tlicir  known  Custom  of 
making  War,  should  penetrate  into  the  Heart  of  a  settled  Country,  to  bum, 
plunder,  and  murder  the  Inhabitants,  and  not  molest  any  Houses  in  tlicir 
Return,  or  ever  be  seen  or  heard  of?  —  Or  how  can  we  account  for  it,  that 
no  Ravages  have  been  committed  in  Northampton  County  since  the  Re- 
moval of  the  Moravian  Indians,  when  the  Great  Cove  has  been  struck 
since  ?  —  These  Things  put  it  beyond  Doubt  with  us  that  the  Indians  now 
at  Philadelphia  are  his  Majesty's  perfidious  Enemies,  and  therefore,  to  pro- 
tect and  maintain  them  at  the  public  Expence,  while  our  suffering  Brethren 
on  the  Frontiers  are  almost  destitute  of  the  Necessaries  of  Life,  and  are 
neglected  by  the  Public,  is  sufficient  to  make  us  mad  with  Rage,  and  tempt 
us  to  do  what  nothing  but  the  most  violent  Necessity  can  vindicate.  —  We 
humbly  and  earnestly  pray  therefore,  tiiat  those  Enemies  of  his  Majesty  may 
be  removed  as  soon  as  possible  out  of  the  Province. 

Fourthly.  We  humbly  conceive  that  it  is  contrary  to  the  Maxims  of  good 
Policy  and  extremely  dangerous  to  our  Frontiers,  to  suffer  any  Indians,  of 
what  Tribe  soever,  to  live  within  the  inhabited  Parts  of  this  Province,  while 
we  are  engaged  in  an  Indian  War,  as  Experience  has  taught  us  that  they 
are  all  perfidious,  and  their  Claim  to  Freedom  and  Independency,  puts  it  in 
their  Power  to  act  as  Spies,  to  entertain  and  give  Intelligence  to  our  Ene- 
mies, and  to  furnish  them  with  Provisions  and  warlike  Stores.  —  To  this 
fatal  Intercourse  between  our  pretended  Friends  and  open  Enemies,  we 
must  ascribe  the  greatest  Part  of  the  Ravages  and  Murders  that  have  been 
committed  in  the  Course  of  this  and  the  last  Indian  War.  —  We  therefore 
pray  that  this  Grievance  be  taken  under  Consideration,  and  remedied.    -„ 

lythly.  We  cannot  help  lamenting  that  no  Provision  has  been  I^ithertO 
made,  that  such  of  our  Frontier  Inhabitants  as  have  been  wounded  in.  |H»- 
fence  of  the  Province,  their  Lives  and  Liberties  may^  be  taken  Q!&r6-;(Dif,  t|od 
cured  of  their  Wounds,  at  the  public  Expence. -^  We  theryfotfe  pray  that 
this  Grievance  may  be  redressed.  ■ .. 

Sixthly.  In  the  late  Indian  War  this  Province,  with  otheis  of  his 
Majesty's  Colonies,  gave  Rewards  for  Indian  Scalps,  to  encourage  the 


it 


iii: 


■■■»^•l^l 


M 


:m 


616 


APPENDIX  E. 


seeking  them  in  their  owi  Country,  as  the  most  likely  Means  of  dcstroyintr 
or  reducing  them  to  Reason ;  but  no  such  Encouragement  has  been  given 
in  this  War,  which  has  damped  the  Spirits  of  many  brave  Men,  who  are 
willing  to  venture  their  Lives  in  Parties  against  the  Enemy.  — We  therefore 
pray  that  public  Rewards  may  be  proposed  for  Indian  Scalps,  which  may 
be  adequate  to  the  Dangers  attending  Enterprises  of  this  Nature. 

Sevenihly.  We  daily  lament  that  Numbers  of  our  nearest  and  dearest 
Relatives  are  still  in  Captivity  among  the  savage  Heathen,  to  be  trained  up 
in  all  their  Ignorance  and  Barbarity,  or  to  be  tortured  to  Death  with  all  the 
Contrivances  of  Indian  Cruelty,  for  attempting  to  make  their  Escape  from 
Bondage.  We  see  they  pay  no  Regard  to  the  many  solemn  Promises 
which  they  have  made  to  restore  our  Friends  who  are  in  Bondage  amongst 
them.  —  We  therefore  earnestly  pray  that  no  Trade  may  hereafter  be  per- 
mitted to  be  carried  on  with  them,  until  our  Brethren  and  Relatives  are 
brought  Home  to  us. 

Eighthly.  We  complain  that  a  certain  Society  of  People  in  this  Province 
in  the  late  Indian  War,  and  at  several  Treaties  held  by  the  King's  Repre- 
sentatives, openly  loaded  the  Indians  with  Presents ;  and  that  F.  P.,  a  Leader 
of  the  said  Society,  in  Defiance  of  all  Government,  not  only  abetted  our 
Indian  Enemies,  but  kept  up  a  private  Intelligence  with  them,  and  publickly 
received  from  them  a  Belt  of  Wampum,  a&  if  he  had  been  oui  Governor,  or 
authorized  by  the  King  to  treat  with  his  Enemies.  —  By  this  Means  the 
Indians  have  been  taught  to  despise  us  as  a  weak  and  disunited  People,  and, 
from  this  fatal  Source  have  arose  many  of  our  Calamities  under  which  we 
groan.  —  We  humbly  pray,  therefore,  that  this  Grievance  may  be  redressed, 
and  that  no  private  Subject  be  hereafter  permitted  to  treat  with,  or  cany  on 
a  Correspondence  with  our  Enemies. 

NirdUy.  We  cannot  but  observe  with  Sorrow,  that  Fort  Augusta,  which 
has  been  very  expensive  to  this  Province,  has  afforded  us  but  little  Assistance 
during  this  or  the  last  War.  The  Men  that  were  stationed  at  that  Place 
neither  helped  our  distressed  Inhabitants  to  save  their  Crops,  nor  did  they 
attack  our  Enemies  in  their  Towns,  or  patrol  on  our  Frontiers. — We 
humbly  request  that  proper  Measures  may  be  taken  to  make  that  Garrison 
more  ,;erviceable  to  us  in  our  Distress,  if  it  can  be  done. 


■:\ 


N.  B.  We  are  far  from  intending  any  Reflection  against  the  Com- 
manding Officer  stationed  at  Augusta,  as  we  presume  his  Conduct  was 
always  directed  by  those  from  whom  he  received  his  Orders. 

Signed  on  Behalf  of  ourselves,  and  by  Appointment  of  a  great  Number 
6Cfthe  frontier  Inhabitants, 

Matthew  Smith. 
■f":  \  James  Gibson. 


I  \ 


APPENDIX  E. 


617 


!■'' 


lis  of  destroyinnr 
has  been  given 
e  Men,  who  are 
— We  therefore 
alps,  which  may 
ature. 

rest  and  dearest 
to  be  trained  up 
cath  with  all  the 
eir  Escape  from 
olemn  Promises 
ondage  amongst 
hereafter  be  per- 
id  Relatives  arc 

in  this  Province 
c  King's  Repre- 
t  F.  P.,  a  Leader 
only  abetted  our 
!m,  and  publickly 
om  Governor,  or 

this  Means  the 
lited  People,  and, 
I  under  which  we 
nay  be  redressed, 
with,  or  carry  on 

t  Augusta,  which 
t  little  Assistance 
ed  at  that  Place 
•ops,  nor  did  they 
Frontiers.  —  We 
ike  that  Garrison 


gainst  the  Com- 

his  Conduct  was 

rs. 

a  great  Number 

rTHEW  Smith. 
E3  Gibson. 


The  Declaration  of  the  injured  Frontier  Inhabitants,  together  witli 
a  brief  Sketch  of  Grievances  the  good  Inhabitants  of  the  Province  labor 
under. 

Inasmuch  as  the  Killing  those  Indians  at  Conestogoe  Manor  and  Lancas- 
ter has  been,  and  may  be,  the  Subject  of  much  Conversation,  and  by  invidi- 
ous Representations  of  it,  which  some,  we  doubt  not,  will  industriously 
spread,  many,  unacquainted  with  the  true  State  of  Affairs,  may  be  Icl  to 
pass  a  severer  Censure  on  the  Authors  of  those  Facts,  and  any  others  of  the 
like  Nature  which  may  hereafter  happen,  than  we  are  persuaded  they  would, 
if  Matters  were  duly  understood  and  deliberated;  we  think  it  therefore 
proper  thus  openly  to  declare- ourselves,  and  render  some  brief  Hints  of  the 
Reasons  of  our  Conduct,  which  we  must,  and  frankly  do,  confess  notliing  but 
Necessity  itself  could  induce  us  to,  or  justify  us  in,  as  it  bears  an  Appearance 
of  flying  in  the  Face  of  Authority,  and  is  attended  with  much  Labour,  Fatigue 
and  Expence. 

Ourselves  then,  to  a  Man,  we  profess  to  be  loyal  Subjects  to  the  best  of 
Kings,  our  rightful  Sovereign  George  the  Third,  firmly  attached  to  his  Royal 
Person,  Interest  and  Government,  and  of  Consequence  equally  opposite  to 
the  Enemies  of  his  Throne  and  Dignity,  whether  openly  avowed,  or  r  .ore 
dangerouf  iy  concealed  under  a  Mask  of  falsely  pretended  Friendship,  and 
chearfully  willing  to  offer  our  Substance  and  Lives  in  his  Cause. 

These  Indians,  known  to  be  firmly  connected  in  Friendship  with  our 
openly  avowed  embittered  Enemies,  and  some  of  whom  have,  by  several 
Oaths,  been  proved  to  be  Murderers,  and  who,  by  their  better  Acquaintance 
with  the  Situation  and  State  of  our  Frontier,  were  more  capable  of  doing  us 
Mischief,  we  saw,  with  Indignation,  therished  and  caressed  as  dearest 
Friends ;  —  But  this,  alas !  is  but  a  Part,  a  small  Part,  of  that  excessive 
Regard  manifested  to  Indians,  beyond  his  Majesty's  loyal  Subjects,  whereof 
wfc  complain,  and  which,  together  with  various  other  Grievances,  have  not 
only  inflamed  with  Resentment  the  Breasts  of  a  Number,  and  urged  them 
to  the  disagreeable  Evidence  of  it,  they  have  been  constrained  to  give,  but 
have  heavily  displeased,  by  far,  the  greatest  Part  of  the  good  Inhabitants 
of  this  Province, 

Should  we  here  reflect  to  former  Treaties,  the  exorbitant  Presents,  and 
great  Servility  therein  paid  to  Indians,  have  long  been  oppressive  Grievances 
we  have  groaned  under ;  and  when  at  the  last  Indian  Treaty  held  at  Lan- 
caster, not  only  was  the  Blood  of  our  many  murdered  Brethren  tamely  cov- 
ered, but  our  poor  unhappy  captivated  Friends  abandoned  to  Slaveiy  ajiiong 
tlic  Savages,  by  concluding  a  Friendship  with  the  Indians,  aixd?ilo^ing 
them  a  plenteous  Trade  of  all  kinds  of  Commodities,  withoiit  thdeo  b^ng 
restored,  or  any  properly  spirited  Requisition  made  of  them  t^^  How  gen- 
eral Dissatisfaction  those  Measures  gave,  the  Murmurs  of  all  good  People 
(loud  as  tiiey  dare  to  utter  them)  to  this  Day  declare.  And  hild  here  infatu- 
ated Steps  of  Conduct,  and  a  manifest  Partiality  in  Favour  of  Indians,  made 


7S 


7Z 


[  i>" ' 


m 


:;•?{.  :..v.' 


618 


APPENDIX  E. 


rr' 


4      . 

"      i 

.  II  i 


.4 


1, 

J 


•'.'■■■•»■■■  J.*' 


a  final  Pause,  happy  had  it  been :  —  We  perhaps  had  grieved  in  Silence  for 
our  abandoned  enslaved  Brethren  among  the  Heathen,  but  Matters  of  a 
later  Date  are  still  more  flagrant  Reasons  of  Complaint.  —  Wlien  last  Sum- 
mer his  Majesty's  Forcer  mder  the  Command  of  Colonel  Bouquet,  marched 
through  this  Province,  and  a  Demand  was  made  by  his  Excellency,  General 
Amherst,  of  Assistance,  to  escort  Provisions,  &c.,  to  relieve  that  important 
Post,  Fort  Pitt,  yet  not  one  Man  was  granted,  although  never  any  Thing 
appeared  more  reasonable  or  necessary,  as  the  Interest  of  the  Ptovince  lay 
so  much  at  Stake,  and  the  Standing  of  the  Frontier  Settlements,  in  any 
Manner,  evidently  depended,  under  God,  on  the  almost  despaired  of  Success 
of  his  Majesty's  little  Army,  whose  Valour  the  whole  Frontiers  with  Grati- 
tude acknowledge,  as  the  happy  Means  of  having  saved  from  Ruin  great 
Part  of  the  Province :  —  But  when  a  Number  of  Indians,  falsely  preten-l  :d 
Friends,  and  having  among  them  some  proved  on  Oatli  tc  have  been  guilty 
of  Murder  since  this  War  begun  ;  when  they,  togetlier  with  others,  knov.  n 
to  be  his  Majesty's  Enemies,  and  who  had  been  in  the  Battle  against  Colonel 
Bouquet,  reduced  to  Distress  by  the  Destruction  of  their  Com  at  the  Great 
Island,  and  up  the  East  Branch  of  Susquehanna,  pretend  themselves  Friends, 
and  desire  a  Subsistence,  they  are  openly  caressed,  and  the  Public,  that 
could  not  be  indulged  the  Liberty  of  contributing  to  his  Majesty's  Assist- 
ance, obliged,  as  Tributaries  to  Savages,  to  Support  these  Villains,  these 
Enemies  to  our  King  and  our  Country ;  nor  only  so,  but  the  Hands  that 
were  closely  shut,  nor  would  grant  his  Majesty's  General  a  single  Farthing 
against  a  savage  Foe,  have  been  liberally  opened,  and  the  public  Money 
basely  pi'ostituted,  to  hire,  at  an  exorbitant  Rate,  a  mercenary  Guard  to  pro- 
tect his  Majesty's  worst  of  Enemies,  those  falsely  pretended  Indian  Frionds, 
while,  at  the  same  Time,  Hundreds  of  poor,  distressed  Families  0:'  liis 
Majesty's  Subjects,  obliged  to  abandon  their  Possessions,  and  fly  for  their 
Lives  at  least,  are  left,  except  a  small  Relief  at  first,  in  the  most  distressing 
Circumstances  to  starve  neglected,  save  what  the  friendly  Hand  of  private 
Donations  has  contributed  to  tlieir  Support,  wherein  tliey  who  are  most  pro- 
fuse towards  Savages  have  carefully  avoided  having  any  Part. — When  last 
Summer  the  Troops  raised  for  Defence  of  the  Province  were  limited  to 
certain  Bounds,  nor  suffered  to  attempt  annoying  our  Enemies  in  their  Hab- 
itations, and  a  Number  of  brave  Volunteers,  equipped  at  their  own  Expcnco, 
marched  in  September  up  tlie  Susquehanna,  met  and  defeated  their  Enemy, 
with  tlie  Loss  of  some  of  their  Number,  and  having  others  dangeroualy 
wounded,  not  the  least  Thanks  or  Acknowledgment  was  made  them  from 
4he  Legislature  for  the  confessed  Service  they  had  done,  nor  any  the  least 
i^c^c  flirCare  taken  of  their  Wounded  ;  whereas,  when  a  Seneca  Indian, 
*»'  0,  "by  Iho  Information  of  many,  as  well  as  by  his  own  Confession,  had 
beilft  i^rough  the  last  ,^^r,  our  inveterate  Enemy,  had  got  a  Cut  in  liis 
Hr ad  iilat'  S^^ttUier  iixa  Quarrel  he  had  with  his  own  Cousin,  and  it  *vas 
reported  ittPl^iladelplua  that  his  tVound  was  dangerous,  a  Doctor  was  ini- 
^  mediately  ori|fe)yed,  and  sent  to  Fort  Augusta  to  take  Care  of  him,  and 
Cure  him,  if  |K>8sible.  — To  tlicse  may  be  added,  that  though  it  was  impossible 


-.^^^r<-t^ 


/:'M 


X' 


A'vy* 


■s. 


MjI 


in  Silence  for 
Matters  of  a 
lien  lust  Sum- 
luquet,  inarched 
llency,  General 
that  important 
Iver  any  Thing 
le  Province  lay 
lements,  in  any 
•ed  of  Success 
lers  with  Grati- 
3m  Ruin  great 
Isely  prcten'l  :d 
ve  been  guilty 
others,  known 
against  Colonel 
•n  at  the  Great 
selves  Friends, 
he  Public,  that 
'ajcsty's  Assist- 
!  Villains,  these 
the  Hands  tliat 
single  Farthing 
J  public  Money 
y  Guard  to  pro- 
Indian  Friends, 
Families  o:  his 
md  fly  for  their 
tnost  distressiig 
Eland  of  private 
10  are  most  pro- 
■t.  —  When  last 
were  limited  to 
3S  in  their  Ilab- 
r  own  Exponcc, 
)d  their  Enemy, 
irs  dangeronaly 
ade  them  from 
)r  any  the  least 
Seneca  Indian, 
confession,  liad 
t  a  Cut  in  liis 
isiii,  and  it  rt-as 
Doctor  was  im- 
re  of  him,  and 
was  impossible 


APPENDIX  E. 


619 


to  obtain  through  the  Summer,  or  even  yet,  any  Premium  for  Indian  Scalps, 
or  Encouragement  to  excite  Volunteers  to  go  forth  against  them,  yet  when 
a  few  of  them,  known  to  be  the  Fast  Friends  of  our  Enemies,  and  some  of 
them  Murderers  themselves,  when  these  have  been  struck  by  a  distressed, 
bereft,  injured  Frontier,  a  liberal  Reward  is  offered  for  apprehending  the 
Perpetrators  of  tiiat  horrible  Crime  of  killing  his  Majesty's  cloaked  Enemies, 
and  their  Conduct  painted  in  the  most  atrocious  Colors ;  while  the  horrid 
Ravages,  cruel  Murders,  and  most  shocking  Barbarities,  committed  by 
Indians  on  his  Majesty's  Subjects,  are  covered  over,  and  excused,  under  the 
charitable  Terra  of  this  being  their  Method  of  making  War. 

But  to  recount  the  many  repeated  Grievances  whereof  we  might  justly 
complain,  and  Instances  of  a  most  violent  Attachment  to  Indians,  were 
tedious  beyond  the  Patience  of  a  Job  to  endure  ;  nor  can  better  be  expected ; 
nor  need  we  T)e  surprised  at  Indians  Insolence  and  Villainy,  when  it  is  con- 
sidered, and  which  can  be  proved  from  the  public  Records  of  a  certain 
County,  that  some  Time  before  Conrad  Weiser  died,  some  Indians  belong- 
ing to  the  Great  Island  or  Wyalousing,  assured  him  that  Israel  Pcmberton, 
(an  ancient  Leader  of  that  Faction  which,  for  so  long  a  Time,  have  found 
Means  to  enslave  the  Province  to  Indians,)  together  with  others  of  the 
Friends,  had  given  them  a  Rod  to  scourge  the  white  People  that  were  settled 
on  the  purchased  Lands ;  for  that  Onas  had  cheated  them  out  of  a  great 
Deal  of  Land,  or  hat  not  given  near  suffic  nt  Price  for  what  he  had  ''ouglit ; 
and  that  the  Traders  ought  also  to  be  sco-rged,  for  that  they  defrauded  the 
Indians,  by  selling  Good=i  to  them  at  too  dear  a  Rate ;  and  tliat  this  Relation 
is  Matter  of  Fact,  can  easily  be  proved  in  the  County  of  Berks.  —  Such  is 
our  unhappy  Situation,  under  the  \  illainy.  Infatuation  and  Influence  of  a 
certain  Faction,  that  have  got  the  political  Reins  in  tlieir  Hands,  and  tamely 
tyrannize  over  the  other  good  Subjects  of  the  Province !  —  And  can  it  be 
thought  strange  that  a  Scene  of  such  Treatment  as  this,  and  the  now 
adding,  in  this  critical  Juncture,  to  all  our  former  Distresses,  that  disagree- 
able Burden  of  supporting,  in  the  very  Heart  of  the  Province,  at  so  great 
an  Expence,  between  One  and  Two  hundred  Indians,  to  the  great  Disquie- 
tude of  the  Majority  of  the  good  Inhabitants  of  this  Province,  should 
awaken  the  Resentment  of  a  People  grossly  abased,  unrighteously  bur- 
dened, and  made  Dupes  and  Slaves  to  Indians  ?  —  And  must  not  all  well- 
disposed  People  entertain  a  charitable  Sentiinont  of  those  who,  at  their  own 
great  ExpcMce  and  Trojble,  have  attempted,  or  shall  attempt,  rescuing  a 
laboring  Land  from  a  Weight  so  oppressive,  unreasonable,  and  unjust?  —  It 
is  this  we  design,  it  is  tliis  we  are  resolved  to  prosecute,  though  it\is  witli 
great  Reluctance  we  are  obliged  to  adopt  a  Measure  not  so  agreeablp*!^ 
could  be  desired,  and  to  which  Extremity  alone  compeli3..-T-QQ(f'satq:Kth6 
King. 


r 


V  ■  ■ 


■  ■•■at  V>  ;''■  -J  ■  '  tril 

*'*'^3j:'> ■>■'.-  -■■'■'■ 


u. 


f-.f 


•-*   '        ill-'"      . 


APPENDIX   F. 


CAMPAIGN  OF  1764. 


1.    Bouquet's  Expedition. 

Letter  —  Gcnei-al  Gage  to  Lord  Halifax,  December  13,  1764.    (p.  502.) 

The  Perfidy  of  the  Shawanese  and  Delawares,  and  their  having  broken 

tlie  ties,  which  even  the  Sayage  Nations  hold  sacred  amongst  each  other, 

required  vigorous  measures  to  reduce  tiiem.    We  had  experienced  tlieir 

treachery  so  often,  that  I  determined  to  make  no  peace  with  them,  but  in 

tlie  Heart  of  their  Country,  and  upon  such  terms  an  should  make  it  as 

secure  as  it  was  possible.    This  conduct  has  produced  all  the  good  effects 

which  could  be  wished  or  expected  from  it.     Those  Indians  have  been 

humbled  and  reduced  to  accept  of  Peace  upon  the  terms  prescribed  to 

them,  iu  such  a  manner  a^  will  give  reputation  to  His  Majesty's  Arms 

amongst  the  several  Nations.    The  Regular  and  Provincial  Troops  under 

Colonel  Bouquet,  having  been  joined  by  a  good  body  of  Volunteers  from 

Virginia,  and  others  from  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania,  marched  from  Fort 

Pitt  the  Beginning  of  October,  and  got  to  Tuscaroras  aboit,  tlie  fifteenth. 

The  March  of  the  Troops  into  their  Country  thre\'  the  Savages    nto  tlic 

'greatest  Consternation,  as  they  had  hoped  their  Woods  would  protect  them, 

'  'and  had  boasted  of  the  Security  of  their  Situation  from  our  Attacks.    Tlie 

Indians  hovered  round  the  Troops  during  their  March,  but  despairing  of 

guccessiih  an  Action,  had  recourse  to  Negotiations.    They  were  told  that 

"^^ey/ifiig^  have  Peace,  bjit  every  Prisoner  in  their  possession  must  first  be 

3eli^ered^\ip.    Il^tey  brought  in  near  twenty,  and  promised  to  deliver  Mie 

tt^^A }  bu£to,;)ifeir  promises  were  not  regarded,  they  engaged  to  deliver  the 

wlin^j^ti^'^  of  November,  at  the  Forks  of  the  Muskingham,  about  one 

jkJ^'Vi  ^hun^edmJ'Sfty.mihlfifrom  Fort  Pitt,  the  Centre  of  tlie  Delaware  Towns, 

J  O-vA  n(  «^  i^<(M  most  consid^fli^e  settlement  of  the  Shawanese.    Colonel 

S!^'^^'     Houquct  RfgtflSbin  in  sight,  and  moved  his  Camp  to  that  Place.    He  soon 

^!ft»*'*    iibliged  »Jie  Delawares  and  some  broken  tribes  of  Mohikons.  Wiandots,  and 


'\r 


^1^ 

ffm 

1^ 

Jt^ 

^rm^ 

^jiL 


'*.    ,*.       *.       set  ••    .  .     -*    .        •  ^L' 


APPENDIX  R 


621 


Mingoc^g,  to  bring  in  all  their  Prisoners,  even  to  the  Children  bom  of  White 
Women,  end  to  tie  those  who  were  grown  aa  Savage  as  themselves  and 
unwilling  to  leave  them,  and  bring  them  bound  to  the  Camp.  They  were 
then  told  that  they  must  appoint  deputies  to  go  to  Sir  William  Johnson  to 
receive  such  terms  as  should  be  imposed  upon  them,  which  the  Nations 
p'iiould  agree  to  ratify ;  and,  for  the  security  of  their  performance  of  this, 
and  that  no  farther  Hostilities  should  be  committed,  a  number  of  their  Chiefs 
must  remain  in  our  hands.  The  above  Nations  subscribed  to  these  terms ; 
but  the  Shawanese  were'more  obstinate,  and  were  particularly  averse  to  the 
giving  of  Hostages.  But  finding  their  obstinacy  had  no  effect,  and  would 
only  tend  to  their  destruction,  the  Troops  having  penetrated  into  the  Heart 
of  their  Country,  they  at  length  became  sensible  that  there  was  no  safety 
but  in  Submission,  and  were  obliged  to  stoop  to  the  same  Conditions  as  the 
other  nations.  They  unmediately  gave  up  forty  Prisoners,  and  promised 
the  Rest  should  be  sent  to  Fort  Pitt  in  the  Spring.  This  last  not  being  " 
admitted,  the  immediate  Restitution  of  all  the  Prisoners  being  the  sine  qua 
non  of  peace,  it  was  agreed,  that  parties  should  be  sent  from  the  Army  into 
tlieir  towns,  to  collect  the  Prisoners,  and  conduct  them  to  Fort  Pitt.  Tbey 
delivered  six  of  their  principal  Chiefs  as  hostages  into  our  Hands,  and 
appointed  their  deputies  to  go  to  Sir  William  Johnson,  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  Rest.  The  Number  of  Prisoners  already  delivered  exceeds  i-.vo 
hundred,  and  it  was  expected  that  our  Parties  would  bring  in  near  one 
hundred  more  from  the  Shawanese  Towns.  These  Conditions  seem  suf- 
ficient Proofs  of  the  Sincerity  and  Humiliation  of  those  Nations,  and  in 
justice  to  Colonel  Bouquet,  I  must  testify  the  Obligations  I  have  to  him, 
and  that  nothing  but  the  firm  and  steady  conduct,  which  he  observed  in  all 
his  Transactions  with  those  treacherous  Savages,  would  ever  have  brought 
tliem  to  a  serious  Peace. 

I  must  flatter  myself,  that  the  Country  is  restored  to  its  former  Tran- 
quility, and  that  v-  general,  and,  it  is  hoped,  lasting  Peace  is  concluded  with 
all  the  Indian  Nations  who  have  taken  up  Arms  against  his  Majesty. 

I  remain, 

etc., 

Thomas  Gage. 


In  Assembly,  January  15, 1765,  A.  M. 


"-r 


To  the  Honourable  Henry  Bouquet,  Esq.,  Commander  in  Chiie^.of  K[je„ 
Majesty's  Forces  in  the  Soutliern  Department  of  America.  1  ■  .\,).u^^ 

The  Address  of  the  Representatives  of  the  Freemen  ofyva;I5i»yilMi'*C 
Pennsylvania,  in  General  Assembly  met.  ,,      i 

Sir:  •       V  .;    .      V-^,     ■ 

The  Representatives  of  the  Freemen  of ''the  Province 
in  General  Assembly  met,  being  informed  that  yyu  intend  f. 

'A 


\.\r-t 


?K* 


:'/\- 


:j^%-: 


r 


ikr,^-' 


I  V*^!^ 


m 


•ti,  , ;, 
lykaftla,^^.  ||M 
embark     ^J\v'^ 


'I.^i 


622 


APPENDIX  F. 


«:  • 

u 

r 
I 


for  England,  and  moved  with  a  due  Sense  of  the  important  Services  you 
have  rendered  to  his  Majesty,  his  Northern  Colonies  in  general,  and  to  this 
Province  in  particular,  during  our  late  Wars  with  the  French,  and  barbarous 
Indians,  in  the  remarkable  Victory  over  the  savage  Enemy,  united  to  oppose 
you,  near  Bushy  Run,  in  August,  1763,  when  on  your  March  for  the  Relief 
of  Pittsburg,  owing,  under  God,  to  your  Intrepidity  and  superior  Skill  in 
Command,  together  with  the  Bravery  of  your  Officers  and  little  Army  ;  as 
also  in  your  late  March  to  the  Country  of  the  savage  Nations,  with  the 
Troops  under  your  Direction ;  thereby  striking  Terror  through  the  numerous 
Indian  Tribes  around  you ;  laying  a  Foundation  for  a  lasting  as  well  as 
honorable  Peace,  and  rescuing,  from  savage  Captivity,  upwards  of  Two 
Hundred  of  our  Christian  Bretliren,  Prisoners  among  them.  These  eminent 
Services,  and  your  constant  Attention  to  the  Civil  Rights  of  his  Majesty's 
Subjects  in  this  Province,  demand.  Sir,  the  grateful  Tnbn'.o  of  Thanks  from 
all  good  Men ;  and  therefore  we,  the  Representatives  of  the  Freemen  of 
Pennsylvania,  unanimously  for  ourselves,  and  in  Behalf  of  all  the  People 
of  this  Province,  do  return  you  our  most  sincere  and  hearty  Tlionks  for 
tliese  your  great  Services,  wishing  you  a  safe  and  pleasant  Voyagu  \o  Eng- 
land, with  a  kind  and  gracious  Reception  from  his  Majesty. 

Signed,  by  Order  of  the  House,  ' ' 

JosLPH  Fox,  Speaker. 


2.  Condition  and  Temper  of  the  Western  Indians. 

Extract  from  a  Letter  of  Sir  Williitm  Johnson  to  the  Board  of  Trade, 
1764,  December  26. 

Your  Lordships  will  please  to  observe  that  for  many  months  before  the 

march  of  Colonel  Bradstreet's  army,  several  of  the  Western  Nations  had 

expressed  a  desire  for  peace,  and  had  ceused  to  commit  hostilities,  that  even 

Pontiac  inclined  that  way,  but  did  not  choose  to  venture  his  person  by 

coming  into  any  of  the  posts.    This  was  the  state  of  affiiirs  when  I  treated 

witli  the  Indians  at  Niagara,  in  which  number  were  fifteen  hundred  of  the 

Western  Nations,  a  number  infinitely  more  considerable  than  those  who 

were  twice  treated  with  at  Detroit,  many  of  whom  are  the  same  people, 

,-*;  particularly  the  Hurons  and  Chippewas.    In  the  mean  time  it  now  appears, 

-  ?  -^      from  the  very  best  authorities,  and  can  be  proved  by  tlie  oath  of  several 

;*"  *    jtgSjJect^o  persons,  prisoners  at  the  Illinois  and  amongst  the  Indians,  as 

■     .    ipK^irifoifi  life  accountB  of  the  Indians  themselves,  tliat  not  only  many  French 

tni^M^^ii^'flso  ^ench  ofilcers  came  amongst  the  Indians,  as  they  said, 

)  assure  thrm  that  the  French  King  was  determined  to 

e  utmpBt,  aljd  not  only  invited  them  to  the  Illinois,  where 

illy  mipplied  withjammunitlon  and  other  necessaries,  but 

canorti  at  dl^ent  times  up  the  Illinois  river,  to  tlie 

tif  as  well  as  up  the  Ohio  to  the  Shawanese  and  Delawarea, 

.  ^<>      '"  '^-- 


fc 


APPENDIX  F. 


623 


Services  you 
il,  and  to  this 
ind  barbarous 
ited  to  oppose 
or  the  Relief 
erior  Skill  in 
tie  Army ;  as 
ions,  with  the 
the  numerous 
iir  as  well  as 
rards  of  Two 
["hcse  eminent 
his  Majesty's 
F  Thanks  from 
9  Freemen  of 
ill  the  People 
ty  Thpnks  for 
oyagu  io  Eng- 


)x,  Speaker. 


DIANS. 

oard  of  Trade, 

Qths  before  the 
n  Nations  had 
ities,  that  even 

his  person  by 
when  I  treated 
hundred  of  the 
;han  those  who 
B  same  people, 
it  now  appears, 
oath  of  several 
the  Indians,  as 
ly  many  French 
IS,  as  they  said, 

determined  to 

Illinois,  where 

necessaries,  but 

■is  river,  to  tlie 

and  Delawarea, 


as  by  Major  Smallman's  account,  and  several  others,  (then  prisoners.) 
transmitted  me  by  Colonel  Bouquet,  and  one  of  my  officers  who  accompanied 
him,  will  appear.  Tliat  in  an  especial  manner  tlie  Frencli  promoted  the 
interest  of  Pontiac,  whose  influence  is  now  become  so  considerable,  as  Gen- 
eral Gage  observes  in  a  late  letter  to  me,  that  it  extends  even  to  the  Mouth 
of  the  Mississippi,  and  has  been  the  principal  occasion  of  our  not  as  yet 
gaining  the  Illinois,  which  the  French  as  well  as  Indians  are  interested  in 
preventing.  This  Pontiac  is  not  included  in  the  late  Treaty  at  Detroit,  and 
is  at  the  head  of  a  great  rnmber  of  Indians  privately  supported  by  tlie 
French,  an  officer  of  whom  vas  about  three  months  ago  at  tlie  Miamis 
Castle,  at  the  Scioto  Plains,  Muskingum,  and  several  other  places.  The 
Western  Indians,  who  it  seems  ridicule  the  whole  expedition,  will  be  influ- 
enced to  such  a  pitch,  by  the  interested  French  on  the  one  side,  and  tlie 
influence  of  Pontiac  on  the  other,  that  we  have  great  reason  to  apprehend 
a  renewal  of  hostilities,  or  at  least  that  they  and  the  Twightees  (Miamis) 
will  strenuously  oppose  our  possessing  the  Illinois,  which  can  never  be 
accomplished  without  tlieir  consent.  And  indeed  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that 
they  should  be  concerned  at  our  occupying  that  country,  when  we  con- 
sider that  the  French  (be  their  motive  what  it  will)  loaded  them  with  favors, 
and  continue  to  do  so,  accompanied  with  all  outward  marks  of  esteem,  and 
an  address  peculiarly  adapted  to  their  manners,  which  infallibly  gains  upon 
all  Indians,  who  judge  by  extremes  only,  and  with  all  their  acquaintance  with 
us  upon  the  frontiers,  have  never  found  any  thing  like  it,  but  on  the  contrary, 
harsh  treatment,  angry  words,  and  in  short  any  thing  which  can  be  thought  of 
to  inspire  them  with  a  dislike  to  our  manners  and  a  jealousy  of  our  views.  I 
have  seen  so  much  of  these  matters,  and  I  am  so  well  convinced  of  the  utter 
aversion  that  our  people  have  for  tliem  in  general,  and  of  the  imprudence 
with  which  they  constantly  express  it,  that  I  absolutely  despair  of  our  seeing 
tranquility  established,  until  your  Lordships'  plan  is  fully  settled,  so  as  I 
may  have  proper  persons  to  reside  at  the  Posts,  whose  business  it  shall  be  to 
remove  their  prejudices,  and  whose  interest  it  becomes  to  obtain  their  esteem 
and  friendship. 

The  importance  of  speedily  possessing  the  Illinois,  and  tliereby  securing 
a  considerable  branch  of  trade,  as  well  as  cutting  ofi"  tlie  channel  by  which 
our  enemies  have  been  and  will  always  bo  supplied,  is  a  matter  I  have  very., 
much  at  heart,  and  what  I  think  may  be  effijcted  this  winter  by  land  by  Mf... 
Croglian,  in  case  matters  can  be  so  far  settled  with  the  Twightees,  Shawa- 
noes,  and  Pontiac,  as  to  engage  the  latter,  with  some  chiefs, of  tlie  before- 
mentioned  nations,  to  accompany  him  with  a  garrison.    The  expen^ifl^ttend-r 
ing  this  will  be  large,  but  the  end  to  be  obtained  is  too  consider^e , 
neglected.    I  have  accordingly  recommended  it  to  the  conBidera4^«iJi jSfi 
eral  Gage,  and  shall,  on  tlie  arrival  of  the  Shawaooes,  Dela 
do  all  in  my  power  to  pave  the  way  for  cflcctiug  it^  '§1- shall 
a  peace  with  them,  as  will  be  most  fot»  the  credit  j|^d  ai 
crown,  and  the  =ocurity  of  the  trade  and  froaiiers,  and-tie  thi 
conditions  as  Inuians  will  most  probably  observe.  ,^ 


i'i 


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it"' 


NOTE. 


More  than  half  the  documents  intended  for  publication  in  the  Appendix 
have  been  omitted,  from  an  unwillingness  to  increase  the  size  of  the 
volume. 

Of  the  accompanying  maps,  the  first  two  were  constructed  for  the  illus- 
tration of  this  work.  The  otliers  are  fac-similes  from  the  surveys  of  the  able 
engineer  Thomas  Hutchins,  the  friend  of  Colonel  Bouquet,  and  chronicler 
of  his  expeditions  into  the  Indian  country.  The  original  of  the  larger  of 
these  fac-similes  is  prefixed  to  Hutchins'  Account  of  Bouquet's  Expedition. 
That  of  the  smaller  will  be  fouud  in  his  Topographical  Description  of  Vir- 
ginia, etc.    Both  these  works  are  rare.  <    v  - 


V 


■k 


^1 


■■  <;•■•;•'>:  ■■■*  -■  • 


1  „»«v 


i4      "W     ^■" 


'■^y. 


iSSri' 


^ 


»,:*  , 


INDEX. 


•t" 


Acadia,  dispute  concerning  its  bounda- 
ries, 8C.   Outrage  upon  its  people,  102. 

Albany,  135. 

Algonquin  family,  the,  its  extent,  25. 

Algonquins,  Northern,  the,  their  sum- 
mer and  winter  life,  31,  405.  Their 
legendary  law,  33. 

Allegory  of  the  Delaware  Indian,  180. 

Amalgamation  of  French  and  In- 
dians, 69. 

Amherst,  Sir  Jeffrey,  captures  Ticon- 
deroga,  112.  His  character,  172.  His 
efforts  for  the  prosecution  of  the 
war,  345.  Resigns  his  command, 
398. 

Andastes,  the,  22. 

Armstrong,  Colonel,  his  expedition  up 
the  Susquehanna,  394. 

Atotarho,  tradition  of,  II. 

Aubry,  his  council  with  the  Indians, 
537. 

Autumn  at  Detroit,  404. 


B. 

Backwoodsman  of  Virginia,  his  charac- 
ter, 378. 

Ball-play  of  the  Indians  at  Michilli- 
mackinac,  297. 

Battle  of  Bushy  Run,  359,  598.  Of 
take  George,  103.  Of  the  Mononga- 
hela,  98.    Of  Quebec,  121. 

Bedford,  Fort,  attacked  by  Indians,  331. 
Beleaguered  by  Indians,  357. 


79 


Bloody  Bridge,  fight  of,  272. 

Borderer,  the  dying,  349. 

Borders,  the  war  on  the,  344. 

Bouquet,  Cilonel,  ordered  to  relievo 
Fort  Pitt,  346.  His  army  leaves 
Carlisle,  352.  His  life  and  charac- 
ter, 353.  March  of  his  army,  357. 
His  victory  at  Bushy  Run,  359.  His 
march  into  the  Indian  country,  1764, 
482.  Forces  the  Indians  to  ask  peace, 
487.  His  council  on  the  Muskin- 
gum, 488.  Ho  compels  them  to 
surrender  their  prisoners,  494.  Grants 
peace  to  the  Indians,  498.  Ilis  pro- 
motion, 511.  His  death,  512.  His 
expedition  into  the  Indian  country, 
1764,  620.  "Vote  of  thanks  for  his 
services,  621. 

Bvaddock,  General,  sails  for  America, 
92.  Marches  against  Fort  du  Quesnc, 
94.    His  defeat    nd  death,  98,  100. 

Bradutreet,  Colon'^I.  his  character,  448. 
His  army  on  the  ip!  •«,  449.  Deceived 
by  the  Indians,  ^61.  Treats  with  the 
Indians  at  Detroit,  466,  Return,  of 
his  anuy,  476. 

Brebeuf,  his  martyrdom,  47. 

Bull,  Captain,  captured  by  the  IroqnoiS;y 
407. 

Bushy  Run,  battle  of,  359,  59^- 


Cahokia,'«i^ili^e  of,  "iOfi 
Ckllioun,  ah  eftoppo,  i  ' 
C^is&et  daiil^at  Det: 


.^ 


.,40' 


iB* 


Sy 


;*-.' 


626 


INDEX. 


I 


k  '■■ 
I 


'^'^^ 

rl 

■i 

B 

1 

f^r    ■ 

-I 

■      *■, 

■  i' 

-V..:- 

'^i: 


Campbell,  Major,  Iii"  rmf-  I'^^sy  to  Pon- 
tiac's  cnmp,  210.  '^..il.  prisoner  by 
rontiac,  2 1 2.    His  death,  20 1 . 

Canadn  .ts  military  efflciency,  45.  Its 
religious  zeal,  45.  Attacked  by  the 
Iroquois,  60.  State  of,  in  1759,  111. 
Conquered  by  the  English,  126. 

Canadians,  the,  their  character,  43. 

Cannibalism  of  the  Indians  at  Michilli- 
mackinae,  313. 

Capti"0,  the  escaped,  388. 

Captives,  sufferings  of,  387. 

Carlisle,  alarm  at,  347.    Scenes  at,  350. 

Carousal  of  the  Indians  at  Detroit,  235. 

Catharine,  she  betrays  the  Indian  plot, 
193. 

Champlain,  his  expedition  against  the 
Iroquois,  59. 

Chapman,  his  escape  from  torture,  330. 

Character  of  the  Indian,  35.  Of  the 
French  Canadian,  43.  Of  the  French 
savage,  70.  Of  hunters  and  trap- 
pers, 141.  Of  the  Virginian  back- 
woodsman, 378.  Of  the  Creole  of 
the  Illinois,  518. 

Chouteau,  Pierre,  523,  568. 

Christie,  Ens' ;»:  his  defence  of  Prcsq  i'- 
Isle,  246. 

Civilizatioa  nn.'  '.Kubarism,  140. 

Collis'iiji,  «>,  Fr  n- h  and  English  colo- 
nics, b'J: 

Colonies,    Fr.us'i  ond  English,  com- 
pared, 41. 
Concstoga,  manor  of,  411. 
Concstoga  Indians,  massacred  by  the 
Paxton    men,  414,  417.     Evidence 
against,  604. 
Conspiracy,  Pontiac's,  101. 
Council  at  the  River  Ecorcos,  177. 
'  ■  Courage  of  the  Indians,  its  character,  217. 
;,)*«■*  Coureurs  dcf  bois,  69. 

;e,  his  mission  to  the 

His  councils  at  Fort  Pitt, 

acked  by  Jndians,  550.    His 

sac,  552.    His  coun- 

Khs  at  i^Qtroit,  553. 

nissioDg^S^^^' 


D. 


Feast  of  dogs,  259. 


D'Abbadic,  535. 

Dalzell,  Captain,  ho  sa  ■;  •  ■.  Detroit, 
267.  His  arrival,  2o9.  His  sortie 
from  Detroit,  270.    His  death,  275. 

Davere,  Sir  Robert,  murdered  near  De- 
troit, 207. 

Delawarcs,  the,  their  history  and  charac- 
ter, 26.  Forced  to  remove  westward, 
70.  Their  treaty  with  the  English  in 
1757,  127. 

Detroit,  surrendered  to  Major  Rogers, 
150.  Black  Rain  at,  187.  Its  origin 
and  history,  187.  Its  French  popula- 
tion, 189.  Indians  of  its  neighbor- 
hood, 1 89.  Its  defences,  its  garrison, 
190.  Plot  against  its  garrison  de- 
feated, 199.  General  attack  npon  it, 
207.  The  Indians  continue  to  block- 
ade it,  261.  Truco  granted  to  tho 
Indians  at,  403.  Its  garrison  relieved 
by  Bradstreet,  465.  Councils  at, 
1705,  553. 

Devil's  Hole,  ambuscade  at,  374. 

Dieskau,  Baron,  sails  from  Brest,  92. 

Dinwiddle,  Governor,  sends  Washing- 
ton to  the  Ohio,  87. 


E. 


Ecorces,  River,  council  at  the,  177. 

Ecuyer,  Captain,  his  speeches  to  the  In- 
dian chiefs,  334,  340. 

Elder,  John,  his  efforts  to  defend  the 
frontier,  391.  His  position  and  charac- 
ter, 412.  He  remonstrates  with  the 
Paxton  men,  417. 

English,  their  impolitic  course  towards 
the  Indians,  154. 

Fries,  the,  22. 

Ethcrington,  Captain,  his  letter  to  Glad- 
wyn,  242.  Made  prisoner  by  tho  In- 
dians, 298.    His  letter  to  Gorell,  319. 


F. 


INDEX. 


G27 


ij  fu.  Detroit, 
9.  His  sortie 
9  death,  275, 
Icrcd  near  De- 
ary and  charac- 
lovc  westward, 
the  English  in 

Major  Rogers, 
187.  Its  origin 
French  popula- 
f  its  ucighbor- 
es,  its  garrison, 
,s  garrison  do- 
nttack  upon  it, 
ntinuo  to  block- 
granted  to  tho 
;arrison  relieved 
Couneils    at, 

c  at,  374. 
bm  Brest,  92. 
icnds  Washing- 


at  the,  177. 
leches  to  the  In- 
to defend  the 
ition  and  charac- 
itrates  with  the 

course  towards 


is  letter  to  Glad- 
ioner  by  tho  In- 
rto  Gorell,  319. 


Figlit  of  Bloody  Bridge,  272. 

I'iro  rafts,  203.! 

risher,  murdered  at  Detroit,  205. 

Forest  traveller,  tho,  137. 

Forest  warfare,  diflSeulties  of,  171. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  his  embassy  to  the 

Puxton  men,  438. 
Frascr,  Lieutenant,  his  mission  to  tho 

Illinois,  546. 
Frederic,  Fort,  85. 
French,  English,  and  Indians,  58. 
French,  the,  th'  i  increasing  power  in 

tho  west,  63.    Their  intrigues  among 

the  Indians,  157. 
French  posts  in  tlio  west,  55. 
i'rontenac,  Count,  his  expedition  against 

the  Iroquois,  61. 
Frontier  forts  and  settlements,  323. 
Frontiers    of   Pennsylvania    and   Vir- 
ginia, 379,  380. 
Frontiers,  desolation  of,  381. 
Frontiersmen    of   Pennsylvania,    their 

distress  and  desijcration,  409.    Their 

turbulent  conduct,  541. 
Fur-trade,  the,  of  the  French  and  Eng- 

lisli,  03, 64.  English,  its  disorders,  155. 
Fur-traders,  English,  71,  137. 


G. 

Gage,  General,  assumes  the  command 
in  America,  398. 

Glrtdwyn,  Major,  his  address  and  resolu- 
tion, 194, 199.  His  nan'ow  escape,  266. 

Glendenning,  Archibald,  attack  on  his 
house,  383. 

Gorell,  Lieutenant,  his  prudence  and 
address,  318.  He  abandons  Green 
Bay,  321. 

Goshen,  false  alarm  at,  372. 

Grant,  Captain,  he  conducts  tho  retreat 
of  the  English  at  Bloody  Bridge,  277. 

Green  Bay,  284,  317. 


H. 

Hay,  Lieutenant,  sallies  from  Detroit, 
2G0. 


^afcS^ 


!1.    , 


Ilcnrj',  Alexander,  his  adventures  nt 
Michillimackinac,  T  Warned  of 
danger  by  Wawatam  SJi.  Hisnanow 
escape,  299.  His  adventures,  307. 
His  account  of  an  Indian  (i  icle,  451. 
His  Indian  battalion,  46U. 

Holmes,  Ensign,  dc^    ts  an  Indian  plot. 


167.    His  dcnt'i 
Iluroi      the,  theii 

quered       tli' 
Illinois,  tl.c,  nr  ..u 

tlements  r     13' 

products, 

Its  rrcn( 

ing  Indians,      .< 

Englisli,  522.    0 

lish,  559. 


245 

character.  19.    Con- 

■r,|v         '■. 

French  tot- 
tracter  and 

111/ ■''■   ',  617. 

■8.  .  i.ghbor- 
^•^ion  to  tho 
by  tho  Eng- 


I. 


Indian  tribes,  their  gcncrnl  characteris- 
tics, 2.    Tiieir  generic  divisions,  5. 

Indians,  their  religious  belief,  34.  Their 
character,  35.  The  jn  licy  of  the 
French  and  English  towards,  05,  63. 

Iroquois  family,  the,  6,  24. 

Iroquois,  the  extent  of  their  Conquests, 
6,  575.  Tlicir  government,  8.  Tra- 
ditions of  their  confederacy,  11. 
Their  myths  and  legcmls,  13.  Tlieir 
intellectual  powers,  13.  Their  arts 
and  agriculture,  14.  Their  forts  and 
villages,  14.  Their  winter  life,  16. 
Tlio  war-path,  16.  Their  feasts, 
dances,  and  religious  ceremonies,  18. 
Their  pride,  18.  They  conquer  tho 
Hurons,  21.  Their  warlike  triumphs, 
22.  Their  adoption  of  prisoners,  2^. 
Attacked  by  Chnmplain,  59.  Tliqir.' 
wars  with  Canada,  60.  Attacked  by! 
Count  Frontenac,  61.   Their  tyr^ 

77.  Inclined  to  tho  Fre-**"" 

78.  Tlieir  conduct  during 
war,   130.  .  Thdaucounc: 
AVilliivm  Johnson 
join  tllc|.£^vish  in 
of  the  isre^ai  and 
them,  576 


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INDEX. 


;>i;,  v/; 


!■! 


■    "1 


in 


Jacobs,  his  desperate  coningc,  280. 

Jenkins,  Lientenant,  captured  by  the 
Indians,  243. 

Jesuits,  the,  in  Canada,  46.  Their  mis- 
sions in  the  Illinois,  5:7. 

Jogues,  his  martyrdom,  48. 

Johnson,  Sir  William,  his  life  and  char- 
acter, 80.  His  expedition  against 
Crown  Point,  103.  Captures  Niagara, 
112.  His  council  with  the  Iroquois 
in  1763,  370.  Threatened  with  an 
attack  from  Indians,  372.  Ho  per- 
snades  the  Iroquois  to  join  the  Eng- 
lish in  1763,  406.  His  councils  with 
the  Indians  at  Niagara,  456.  His 
council  with  Fontiac,  562.  His  meas- 
ures to  secure  the  friendship  of  the 
Iroquois,  577. 

Jonois,  Father,  arrives  at  Detroit,  242. 
Befriends  the  English,  306.  His  em- 
bassy to  Detroit,  310. 

Jumonville,  death  of,  89. 


{■: 


La  Butte,  sent  to  Pontiac's  camp,  209. 
Lake  George,   battle   of,  103.     Lake 

George,  108. 
Lallcmant,  his  martyrdom,  47. 
La  Salle,  his  character,  51.    Embarks 
f  on  his  enterprise,  51.    Discovers  the 

Mississippi,  54.    His  death,  55. 
Le  Boeuf,  Fort,  captured  by  Indians,  336. 
Lenni  Lenape,  the,  their  history  and 

,;^aracter,  26. 
]3gonier,  Fort,   attacked   by  Indians, 

•isi,  338.    Its  garrison  relieved,  355. 

jftus.  Major,  his  repulse  on  the  Mis- 

jj^olony  of,  founded,  53. 


Miamis,  the,  29.  "'^  •'  - 

Miami,  Fort,  its  capture,  244.    ''"'*''  '  ^''■' 

Michillimackinac,  tiding?  from,  242. 
The  trading  routes  thither,  2^2.  Its 
appearance  in  1763,  283.  Its  origin 
and  history,  283.  Indians  in  its  neigli- 
borhood,  285.  Warnings  of  danger 
to  its  garrison,  293.  Massacre  at, 
298,  596.  Reoccupied  by  the  Eng- 
lish, 409. 

Military  character  of  the  Indians,  169. 

Military  life  in  the  forest,  140. 

Minavavana,  his  speech  to  Alexander 
Henry,  288.  His  position  and  char- 
acter, 291.  His  speech  to  the  Otta- 
was,  309. 

Missionaries,  French  and  English,  63. 

Mississippi  and  Missouri,  the,  513. 

Mohawk,  the,  military  posts  upon,  133. 

Monongahela,  the,  battle  of,  98. 

Montcalm,  Marquis  of,  captures  Os- 
wego and  William  Henry,  109.  His 
death,  124. 

Montmorcnci,  assault  at,  115. 

Morovians,  their  missions  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, 421. 

Moravian  Indians,  perilous  situation  of, 
422.  They  retreat  to  Philadelphia, 
424.  Sent  to  New  York,  431.  Set- 
tled on  the  Susquehanna,  445. 

Morris,  Captain,  his  embassy,  469. 


N. 

Neutral  Nation,  the,  21. 

New  Orleans  in  1765,  534. 

Neyon,  his  letter  to  Pontiac,  403. 

Niagara,  Fort,  attacked  by  the  Senecas, 
345. 

Niagara,  carrying  place  of,  373.  Con- 
course of  Indians  at,  1764, 454.  Coun- 
cils held  at,  1764,  456. 


Ohio,  the,  Indians  of,  their  alarm  at 
French  and  English  en- roachmcnt, 
90. 


ibife^ 


INDEX. 


629 


Ojibwas,  the,  30.  ,       . 

Onondaga,  its  appearance  in  1743, 133. 
Oswego,  Fort,  its  capture,  109. 
Ottawas,  the,  their  character,  30.    They 

take  possession  of  Michillimackinac, 

309. 
Ouatanon,  Fort,  its  capture,  243. 
Owens,  David,  his  ferocity,  480. 


P. 

Paris,  peace  of,  173.  News  of  it  reaches 
Detroit,  253. 

PauUy,  Ensign,  captured  at  Sandusky, 
238.    Escapes  from  the  Indians,  260. 

Paxton  men,  they  massacre  the  Conas- 
toga  Indians,  414, 417.  They  pre- 
pare to  march  on  Philadelphia,  427. 
They  reach  Grermantown,  437.  Me- 
morials of,  613,  617. 

Paxton  riots,  tlie,  606,  612. 

Paxton,  town  of,  412. 

Peace  of  Pai'is,  1 73.  News  of  it  reaches 
Detroit,  253. 

Pennsylvania,  founded,  71.  Frontiers 
of,  325.  Condition  of  Frontiers  of,  in 
1763, 380.  Political  dissensions  in,  399. 

Penn,  William,  71. 

Picquet,  Father,  79. 

Pioneers,  French  and  English,  50. 

Pitt,  Fort,  its  origin  and  position,  325. 
Alarms  at,  327.  Indian  deputation 
at,  333.  Preparations  for  its  defence, 
338.  General  attack  upon  it,  342. 
Its  garrison  relieved,  367. 

Pittman,  Captain,  attempts  to  ascend 
the  Mississippi,  533. 

Philadelphia,  alaiin  in,  433, 440. 

Plot,  Indian,  defeated,  160. 

Pontiac,  his  meeting  with  Rogers,  148. 
His  character  and  political  course, 
161,  165.  His  war  messengers,  165. 
His  speech  at  the  River  Ecorccs,  179. 
His  ambition  and  patriotism,  191. 
His  treachery  at  Detroit,  202.  He  de- 
clares ojjen  war  on  the  English,  204. 
He  summons  the  garrison  of  Detroit, 
219.  His  speech  to  the  French,  221. 
His  commissary  department,  224.  He 


■'*:»  **    >• 


issues  promissory  notes,  225.  His 
magnanimity,  227.  His  power  over 
his  followers,  226, 228.  He  endeavors 
to  gain  the  alliance  of  the  French,  255. 
His  ambuscade  at  Bloody  Bridge,  271 . 
He  retires  to  the  Maumee,  403.  He 
rallies  the  western  tribes,  526.  He 
visits  the  Illinois,  529.  His  embassy 
to  New  Orleans,  530,  536.  He  plun- 
ders La  Garantais,  548.  Ruin  of  his 
hopes,  549.  His  meeting  with  Cro- 
ghan,  552.  His  speech  to  Croghan, 
556.  His  departure  for  Oswego,  561. 
His  council  with  Sir  William  John- 
son, 562.  His  speech,  565.  His  visit  to 
the  Illinois,  1769, 568.  His  death,  571. 
The  vengeance  of  his  followers,  572. 

Pontiac  Manuscript,  the,  588. 

Pouteach,  a  Tragedy,  581. 

Post,  Christian  Frederic,  his  mission  to 
the  Indians,  128. 

Pottawattamies,  the,  30. 

PresquTslo,  Fort,  its  attack  and  de- 
fence, 245.  Its  capture,  249.  Tidings 
from,  reach  Fort  Pitt,  334. 

Prisoners,  escape  of,  at  Detroit,  232". 
Surrendered  to  Bouquet,  495,  502. 
Their  situation  in  the  Indian  villages, 
507. 

Prophet,  Delaware,  the,  158.  His  speech 
to  Croghan,  545. 

Proprietaries  of  Pennsylvania,  their 
treatment  of  the  Indians,  73. 


Q. 


'«^Ui    11 


Quakers,  the,  their  conduct  towards  ,Uie 
Indians,  72.    Their  reluctanci:  to  d^  ^^; 

clare  war  on  the  Indians,  i^90.    Their  .f  ,jii^^ 

blind  partiality  for  Indians,  397.  Thei?*\^_^  ^^        * 
disputes  with  the  I'rc3byterians^4il.       t^r.'  " 

Quebec,  battle  of,  121.    Bes 
English,  113. 


Rangers,  l^gm^,  144 
Reininiscenci^^^  aged 
Detroit,  59 


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630 


INDEX. 


Bogcrs,  Ilabert,  his  life  and  character, 
144.  His  expedition  up  the  lakes, 
146.  His  meeting  with  Fontiac,  148. 
Ho  defends  the  house  of  Campau, 
275. 

BoyiU  American  Bcgimcut,  the,  334. 


& 


Sandusky,  its  capture,  238. 

Sault  Ste.  Marie,  284,  317. 

Scalps,  reward  offered  for,  479. 

Schlosser,  Ensign,  captured  at  St.  Jo- 
seph's, 240. 

School-house,  attack  on,  385. 

Schooner,  attacks  on,  near  Detroit,  230, 
250, 279.  Cannonades  Pontiac's  camp, 
262.  The  Indians  attempt  to  bam 
her,  263. 

Scnecas,  treaty  with,  456. 

Settlers,  their  intrasion  upon  Indian 
lands,  156. 

Shawanocs,  the,  their  history  and  char- 
acter, 28.    Their  desperation,  496. 

Smith,  James,  his  band  of  riflemen,  393. 
His  predatory  exploits,  541 . 

Smith,  Matthew,  and  his  companions, 
413. 

Spotswood,  Governor,  his  plans  to 
thwart  the  French,  86. 

St.  Angc  do  Bellerire,  524. 

St.  Joseph's,  Fort,  captured,  240. 

Ste.  Marie,  Sault,  284,  317. 

St.  Louis,  foundation  of,  523. 

Stodman,  escape  of,  375. 

Stc^wart,  Lazarus,  416,  421. 


.r-V 


ja,  storming  of,  110. 


^  *^, 


Traders,  slaughtered  by  the   Indians, 

328. 
Trappers  and  hunters,  141. 
Trent,  Captain,  driven  from  the  Ohio, 

88.  ..  .      .  i  ....  ,, 

Venango,  Fort,  captured  by  Indians, 

337. 
Virginia,  frontiers  of,  their  condition  in 

1763,  379.    Her  measm-es  of  defence, 

392. 
Virginian  backwoodsman,  his  character, 

378.  ...  '■■'-•-    ^ 

\V.       - 

Walking  purchase,  the,  75. 

War-belt,  the,  among  the  Miamis,  167. 

War-dance,  the,  175. 

War-feast,  the,  174.  jl 

Washington,  his  mission  to  the  Ohio, 
87.    At  the  Monongahola,  100. 

Wawatam,  his  warning  to  Alexander 
Henry,  294.  Ho  rescues  Henry  from 
captivityj-311. 

Western  Indians,  their  condition  and 
temper,  622. 

West,  the,  French  posts  in,  55. 

Wilderness,  the,  its  scenery,  its  popula- 
tion, 131. 

Wilkins,  Ma'  reck  of  his  detach- 
ment on  T.  le,  377. 

William  Hum^,  iort,  its  capture,  109. 

White  savage,  70. 

Wolfe,  General,  lays  siege  to  Quebec, 
113.  Scales  the  Heights  of  Abraham, 
119.    His  death,  123. 

Wyandots,  the,  their  condition  and  char- 
acter, 19.  Conquered  by  the  Iro- 
quois, 21. 

Wyandots  of  Detroit,  they  join  Pontiac, 
215. 

Wyoming,  massacre  at,  in  1763,  396. 


"i^ 


■'*$V>\ 


by  the   Indians, 

141. 

from  the  Ohio, 


red  by  Indians, 

[leir  condition  in 
sures  of  defence, 


■Hl- 


w 


an,  his  character, 


75. 
he  Miamis,  167. 

.....-■.:...-.  I  r 

on  to  the  Ohio, 
Eihcla,  100. 
g  to  Alexander 
:ue3  Henry  from 

r  condition  and 

s  in,  53. 

nery,  its  popula- 

c  of  his  dctach- 

377. 

ts  capture,  109. 

iicge  to  Quebec, 
;hts  of  Abraham, 

ndition  and  char- 
red by  the   Iro- 

hey  join  Pontiac, 

,  in  1763,  396. 


X  r   k 


Vv,\- 


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